Let the Countdown Begin

Want to know the last time the four of us in this happy little family took a vacation?

That would be never.

That’s right, since Eli was born the four of us haven’t packed up and headed to the beach, the lake or to the hills.  I’ve taken the kids on vacation while Mike slogged away at the office.  We’ve taken a few day trips here and there.  We planned a family vacation to Michigan last summer and then had to cancel at the last minute due to a work conflict (insert sad trombone).

All that is about to change because in 46 days we are OFF TO DISNEY!!!!

Yes, in just over 6 weeks we’ll board a plane to the hap-hap-happiest place on earth.  And we have just one thought on our mind: will we all come back in one piece after spending 5 nights in a 260 square foot Disney property?

Of course we will.  That’s why they put the mini-fridge in there to stock with tiny bottles of alcohol.

What do you think Ariel has stashed in that barrel?

Gadgets and gizmos a-plenty?

No. It’s whozits and whatzits and mini-bottles galore.

All kidding aside, we are thrilled about our upcoming vacation.  We last visited Disney in February of 2007.  We took Peyton Manning’s advice to heart, and since he won the Super Bowl and was going to Disney, then by God we were going, too.  It was an amazing trip.  Not only did we have the time of our lives, we timed it just right, too.  I do believe we got dumped with more than a foot of snow back home.

Speaking of timing, we have a few personal family rules about when to visit Disney that explain why it’s been over 5 years since our last visit.  No one from the Six family goes to Disney unless:

• They are fully functional in the bathroom by themselves.
• They do not require a stroller to have a good time.
• They do not need a nap to get through the day.
• They are old enough to remember the crap load of money we are about to drop on this vacation.

She swears she remembers it all.  I remember when she used to

let me put her hair in pigtails and dress her in Gymboree.

I feel pretty good about our plans and preparations so far.  We’re flying into Orlando and renting a car so we can visit family and friends in Tampa.  We booked a room in one of the All-Star resorts (we stayed on property at an All-Star resort before and were very happy).   We’ll be at Disney World on a Sunday-Friday.  We’re thinking we’ll go with 3-Day passes without the Park Hopper benefit (we know our limitations).  We plan to visit Magic Kingdom, Epcot and Animal Kingdom (we weren’t overly impressed with Hollywood Studios last time around). That gives us one day of rest as well as one day for Mike and Elena to head over to Universal’s  Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

Now, seasoned Disney readers (and I do hope there are some of you out there) … I have a few questions for you:

1. What’s your take on a dinner reservation?  My kids are not into characters, so I’m thinking we can forego a character meal.  But what about the Hoop-dee-doo Musical Review or the Spirit of Aloha dinner?  Worth the (gulp) $185 for all of us to go?
2. Any suggestions for Mike and Elena as they tackle the Wizarding World?  They’ll be going on a weekday in the middle of November, if that helps.
3. What should Eli and I do with our “free” day to ourselves?  We have three choices: do nothing and relax at the hotel pool, spend an extra $30 and add a day on to our Disney tickets to visit Hollywood Studios, or find a way to get ourselves to Legoland?

And just for fun, if you’ve already been, what was the best and worst part of your trip?  We know we’ll have a blast, but we also know that dumb stuff is just bound to happen so you might as well roll with it.  Hearing your stories will help keep our feet on the ground and our eyes on Tinkerbell.