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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Chantel, I'm so glad you mentioned this. I'm very aware of this fact - and I've always tried to encourage my kids to speak up for themselves and follow their feelings, and that just because someone is an adult, doesn't mean they have to do everything they tell them (I'm sure you all know what I'm referring to by this, but it goes for a lot of other things, too.)
Hope I didn't come off too brash--wasn't trying to imply anything.
I gave a little smirk when you said Cory talked back a little - she sounds like a real fire cracker (the best way to be )!! But give yourself some credit - you have raised girls who feel very confident to take a stand and voice their opinions. This is the perfect opportunity for you to coach them through deciphering the fine line between being confident and standing up for your POV, and using excuses to not face your fears. I give you all the credit in the world, Cathy... this is a tough, and slightly abstract lesson to teach and you sound like you're handling it really, really well!
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Boogie down!!! __________________________________________________ ______ "Life's like a movie, write your own ending. Keep believing. Keep pretending." from The Muppet Movie
I'm glad the instructor came over to talk to you. I had an issue with one of DS's swimming instructors yelling at the kids. The kids were only about 3 and 4 years old and some of them, including DS, still didn't want to float on their back and put their ears in the water. All the parents in the viewing area could hear the instructor yelling at the kids. I was not happy. I talked to the director and let her know how I felt and that the particular instructor shouldn't be working with such young children if he couldn't be patient with them. I also pulled DS out of the class. For the next few classes I always asked who the instructor would be before signing him up. We never had another problem.
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My daughter was very stubborn and when she took swim lessons at age 6, she refused to let go of the metal ladder on the side of the pool (in the shallow end, not over her head). Her instructor only had 2 kids in her session so she would've had a lot of individualized attention, had she let go of the ladder! But, she repeatedly told the teacher she wasn't ready to do "that" and the teacher let her cling to her ladder. I decided that maybe she just wasn't ready, so we waited a few years, and then she let me teach her and she learned how to swim a lap across the pool in a day. Every child is different and their fears, no matter if they are unfounded or not, are very real to them. I also am in favor of a child who stands their ground in a polite way.
Good luck with your kids. The hardest thing is if one of the kids is affecting the other kid's perspective.
I gave a little smirk when you said Cory talked back a little - she sounds like a real fire cracker (the best way to be )!! But give yourself some credit - you have raised girls who feel very confident to take a stand and voice their opinions. This is the perfect opportunity for you to coach them through deciphering the fine line between being confident and standing up for your POV, and using excuses to not face your fears.
Ohh, but you sound like YOU have some good ideas on this 'teachable moment' - please, please, please - share!! (In other words.... "Help!!!!")
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This is sooo great - Unfortunately, I have discovered with my DS there are certain things I HAVE to turn over to someone else to do. I'm thinking that swimming is one of them. That is why I signed him up for lessons. I will have to just back off and let the instructor take charge. It's going to be hard, but I've managed with other activities so I'll manage with this!
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Jennifer / Eeyore is my favorite!! OMG - He's sooooo grown up!!!! And an EAGLE SCOUT!! I can still remember my cute little Tiger Cub! 2016 Reading Goal - 75 books
DS1 was very slow to warm to new things as a young child. He frustrated former husband when at 18 months, he refused to even put his big toe in the kiddie pool. I let him lead the way, knowing he took time before he acted. By 6 he was doing OK at lessons, by 10 an accomplished swimmer and spent high school and summers as a Lifeguard/Swim Instructor. His only regret he says now is we never pushed him to compete. He also got top reviews as an instructor, I think in part because he understood the kids who wouldn't just jump in.
When your DD's are ready, they will learn to swim. Just give them time and encouragement. I never let DS skip lessons and if he wanted to sit by the side of the pool and watch when he was a preschooler that was OK. I was very particular about who taught him and made sure they would not push.
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I talked to the director and let her know how I felt and that the particular instructor shouldn't be working with such young children if he couldn't be patient with them. I also pulled DS out of the class. For the next few classes I always asked who the instructor would be before signing him up. We never had another problem.
But, she repeatedly told the teacher she wasn't ready to do "that" and the teacher let her cling to her ladder. I decided that maybe she just wasn't ready, so we waited a few years, and then she let me teach her and she learned how to swim a lap across the pool in a day. Every child is different and their fears, no matter if they are unfounded or not, are very real to them. I also am in favor of a child who stands their ground in a polite way.
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