As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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My daughter (11yrs old) has a summer birthday and never gets many kids at her party because everyone is away! So, I told her she could have a little party of some other theme once the school year starts up, maybe in October. I thought she would go for a costume party, but she asked if she could have a Mad Tea Party!
It would be a lunch and dessert party with "tea" (or other stuff served in tea pots).
So far we have decided on finger sandwiches and other undecided types of finger foods (maybe some kinds that can be dipped). Then for dessert...all sorts of mini items. Cupcakes decorated like real cakes, cookies decorated with clock faces, petit fours, etc...
We will do it in the fall, so we can set up a table on the back deck and hang all sorts of lanterns and other mismatched items. Everyone will have a different pattern tea cup.
Everyone will have to wear a funny hat to get in. We will have a few extras on hand, just in case someone shows up without a hat.
Now my oldest daughter is thinking about doing the same thing. She would like to have a few close friends over to hang out and have dinner and dessert as described above. She would like it to be a little more grown up though. We'll see.
If anyone has any idea for decorating, recipes or menu items...I would love to hear your ideas!
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Awesome idea! I too have a summer birthday and it was always hard to get people over for a party.
Maybe you can get little boxes and bottles from a local craft store. Paint the boxes wild colors and attach a note that says "Eat Me" and put little petit fours in those. Then the bottles, fill with different drinks and label those "Drink Me". They can take the boxes home as a gift.
DD had an Alice birthday party when she was little. I baked cookies and wrote "eat me" on the icing with those edible markers. We hung "drink me" tags on the bottles of koolaid with the twist tops.
We had a "painting the roses red" relay and played croquet with nerf balls and inflatable flamingos (from Oriental Trading Co.)
There's a book out called "Taking Tea with Alice" that has variations for kids, adults, holidays all based on elements from the Lewis Carroll book. You might be able to find it at your library or through interlibrary loan. I'll try to remember to come back and post the details and ISBN number.
My DD had a tea party birthday a few years ago.. I wrote about it here http://www.passporterboards.com/forums/sunroom-fun-games-chat/115923-tea-party-story.html unfortunately most of the photos were deleted but you get the idea.. to this day all of the girls still talk about Shelbys cool party . I went to the thrift store & bought fine china cups & saucers for each girl, sugar cubes (BIG hit), girls could have real tea or apple juice if they preffered.
the girls also got inexpensive big floppy hats to decorate & take home..