/Cruising on a Dream Full of Frights and Friends: 10/12/13-10/19/13 TR completed 4/21/2014 - Page 5 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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Glad you got the costumes figured out! Even better that you have to do very little work. I love the shirts. Although I think Kelly will have you outdone at MNSSHP. Sounds like her family is going all out for Halloween this trip.
Congratulations on the new car....its a beuaty and looks perfect for a drive down to Florida.
So am I. It took so much stress off of my shoulders, and so did the new car.
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Originally Posted by mommapants
congrats on the car. Normally I would be very nervous getting a car that had had damage to it. But knowing it comes from family and they are trustworthy...I'd say you got a great deal
It was very minor damage, but you're right, having it sold by family makes me feel much better about it, plus I have the warranty to back anything up.
Sounds like lots of fun. Can't wait to see the pictures for your 2 groups!!
Hopefully it all comes together smoothly.
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Originally Posted by lauriep
I'm not into Halloween much myself, either, but I do enjoy others' excitement. Your group insect costumes are wonderful and Hope is the cutest ladybug ever! Can't wait to see both families all dressed in Neverland-themed outfits on the ship. This is going to be such a fun vacation.
Hope's also going to be Izzy from Jake and the Neverland Pirates for Pirate Night, but Chad and I are going to stick with regular clothes for that one.
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Originally Posted by Linnynad
The shirts really did come out great and hopefully you can get more use out of them like we have with ours.
I think I told yo gals before that on our 4 night Dream cruise we were sailing around a storm, it was never bad, which was a good thing, but I felt more movement than normal. Staying outside was helpful.
I'm going to let Hope where her shirt again to school for Halloween. When she tried it on, that's what I told her it was actually for, so she still has no clue where she's going.
For some reason I don't remember that about your last cruise, but after I survived going through a bad storm in the Mediterranean on our Italian cruise, I think I can survive just about anything...well, almost anything. Good to know it didn't effect the cruise itself though. Fingers crossed that we won't have any hurricanes to worry about.
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Originally Posted by cubfancolleen
Can't wait to see the Halloween pictures! And those t-shirts are super cute!
Thanks.
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Originally Posted by chezp
I'm not surprised you guys won - those costumes were superb! Can't wait to see you in your latest costumes.
Aww...thanks! Her costume was the first one I bought, but trying to fine a decent adult bee costume was super hard. Everything is made for...how should I say it...woman who like to wear less around that holiday. I ordered the most innocent one I could find, and then put that black t-shirt over it.
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Originally Posted by guerns17
Great costume ideas..I can't wait to see pictures!
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Originally Posted by KMB733
Can't wait to see the Halloween pictures!! The shirts came out great!!
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Originally Posted by MayraLR
Can't wait to see the costumes for the cruise.
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Originally Posted by JKnott17
I love the Halloween shirts! I can't wait to see you all in your costumes on the cruise, that is going to be cute!
Thanks!
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Originally Posted by pamcarey
Adorable bug costumes! I think that was a well deserved win! The t-shirts are really cute. I can't wait to see all of the costume pics!
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Originally Posted by mushu22
Thanks so much! Hopefully these new costumes will work just as good.
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Originally Posted by stardust190
Glad you got the costumes figured out! Even better that you have to do very little work. I love the shirts. Although I think Kelly will have you outdone at MNSSHP. Sounds like her family is going all out for Halloween this trip.
Getting those costumes from Dawn made everything sooooo much easier. I had originally thought we could do characters from Rapunzel, since Hope already has that costume, and it's her favorite princess. I figured she could be Rapunzel, Chad could be Flynn Rider, and I could be Mother Gothel, but then the thought of trying to put together a costume for me was giving me a headache.
Our trip is almost here! Only a few more days and we hit the road, but before I can get into anything new, I need to update all of you on a change we’ve made to the trip already.
The other day I was reading about more pre-cruise accommodations, and someone had mentioned a few hotels that offer a 40% discount on the parking at the cruise terminal if you stay one night with them. One of the hotels was the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Titusville, FL, which is about 20 minutes away from the port, and right off of 95. After reading all of the extremely positive reviews, I crunched some numbers and determined that by switching our reservation to this hotel, we would only be spending an extra $2, which would then allow us to leave our car directly at the port. I had read a few reviews about issues with slow shuttle service at the Country Inn and Suites, and that was always in the back of my mind when I made our reservation, so when I found this other option, along with the rave reviews for this hotel, I couldn’t pass it up.
So with all of our plans now in order, here’s what our trip looks like (minus any last minute surprises):
Friday, Oct. 11th - Pre-Trip: Work a half day. Then pamper myself with a mani/pedi, finish up any last minute packing and get the car prepped as much as possible so that there’s less to do in the early hours of our departure.
Before we put Hope to bed this night, we plan on telling her we’re going on a really long car trip, just so she’s not too confused when we wake her up and put her right in the car. I want her to at least be able to say good-bye to my parents, and of course the cat, just so she feels a little better about leaving the house for a while.
Saturday, Oct. 12th - Day 1: Wake up and get ready to leave the house by 4am. Chad will most likely start out driving so I can sleep at the same time Hope does. Then we’ll just continue taking turns all the way down to Florida. Hopefully the time will go by much faster in real life than I picture it going in my head.
Once we check into the hotel, we’ll probably grab dinner, and then go to bed as early as possible in order to be well rested for the first day of our cruise.
Sunday, Oct. 13th - Day 2: We plan on telling Hope we have a BIG surprise for her, but she won’t be able to see it until we get there. Our port arrival time is 10:30 am, so I’d like to leave the hotel no later than 10am, and since breakfast is included with our hotel reservation, we’ll grab a bite to eat before we leave as well.
I honestly can’t wait to see the look on Hope’s face when she sees the cruise ship. She’s seen a few of them when they’re docked at the Port of Baltimore, and she’s always amazed at how big the “boat” is. I wonder how long it will take for her to figure out it’s a Disney ship.
Once on board, we’ll get our bearings, grab some lunch, and wait for our stateroom to become available. If we’re lucky enough to get our bags right away, I’ll unpack, and then after the muster drill, we have a date with Kelly and her family in her stateroom for our very own private Sail Away Party. Let the fun begin!
Monday, Oct. 14th - Day 3: Our Sea Day…Kelly and I have brunch reservations at Palo for some much needed girl time.
Tuesday, Oct. 15th - Day 4: Our Nassau Day...We’re going to stay on the ship today. Hopefully the pool area won’t be too crowded, and we can enjoy some fun in the sun with Hope before everyone comes back on board. I think this is also the night of the Halloween party.
Wednesday, Oct. 16th - Day 5: Our Castaway Cay Day…This is my favorite part of the cruise! We will probably get off the ship as soon possible, and stay on the island until they kick us out of there. I think this is also the night of the Pirate party.
Thursday, Oct. 17th - Day 6: It’s our cruise departure day, but it’s also our first “Disney” day. Once we’re off the ship, we’ll make our way over to AKL and hopefully get to check-in right away. If not, we’ll probably hang around the pool for a bit, and go look at the animals before we’ll have to get ready for MNSSHP.
We want to be at MK early enough to enter the park at 4pm, that way we can see as much of the non-MNSSHP stuff as we can before the real festivities begin. I think we’re supposed to meet up with Kelly and her family before they head off to BoG for dinner, and then I’m assuming we’ll reconvene again a little bit later. I’ve made a list/schedule of the must-see characters, rides and shows, so fingers crossed that we’re able to get it all done by midnight.
Friday, Oct. 18th - Day 7: Our last full day with absolutely nothing to do! Say What?!?! I know I’m probably going to be sleeping in a bit more than I normally do while in Disney, but there are so many options for this day. Enjoy the pool a bit more, DTD, walk around Crescent Lake and enjoy all the resorts in that area, take a spin on the monorail, etc. The possibilities are endless, so I guess we’re all going to have to wait and see what trouble we decide to get into.
Saturday, Oct. 19th - Day 8: The day we leave. Well hit the road after breakfast, and just drive until we finally get home. I think this is going to be longest day of my life, but knowing that we’ll be back again in May should make the drive home a little bit easier to deal with.
I’m sure all of you have noticed that there are no dining ADRs in this TR, and it’s no mistake…I didn’t make any. Since we weren’t sure if we’d be staying that extra day, I was afraid to make anything for that Friday, and because we were trying to limit the amount of cash spent on this portion of the trip, I had to give up TS meals. That’s not to say something couldn’t just pop up, but right now, we’re eating all CS meals while in the bubble.
And that’s about it! My little last minute pre-trip report. Hope you all enjoyed the cliff notes version of this thing, and I’ll have a lot more details to share when I get back!
__________________
Melissa
Last edited by honeybee723; 11-01-2013 at 02:17 PM..
I think the change in hotels is a good thing, now you won't have any added worries about the shuttle being delayed or things like that. It will be nice to have your car right there at the port when you get back from the cruise. The rest of your plans sound great! Have a fabulous trip!!!!
I'm so excited for you and can't wait to hear Hope's reaction to Mickey's big boat! I love that you and Kelly are doing Palo brunch together alone. That'll be a really special and relaxing meal.
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Love the plans and love the nice relaxing day at the end of your trip, a nice way to wind down from the evening. I agree there is so much to do with a non-park day, Hope should definitely try the cookie decorating at Boma (I would check times but when we were there they did it around 1 PM), the girls had such a fun time doing it and they also did face painting I think around 2:30 at the Mara at the outside tables which again was a hit.
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I ordered the most innocent one I could find, and then put that black t-shirt over it. 
Only a few more days and we hit the road, but before I can get into anything new, I need to update all of you on a change we’ve made to the trip already. 
finish up any last minute packing and get the car prepped as much as possible so that there’s less to do in the early hours of our departure. 
just so she feels a little better about leaving the house for a while. 
Chad will most likely start out driving so I can sleep at the same time Hope does. Then we’ll just continue taking turns all the way down to Florida. Hopefully the time will go by much faster in real life than I picture it going in my head. 
She’s seen a few of them when they’re docked at the Port of Baltimore, and she’s always amazed at how big the “boat” is. I wonder how long it will take for her to figure out it’s a Disney ship. 
Let the fun begin!
We will probably get off the ship as soon possible, and stay on the island until they kick us out of there. I think this is also the night of the Pirate party. 
but it’s also our first “Disney” day. 
I know I’m probably going to be sleeping in a bit more than I normally do while in Disney, but there are so many options for this day. Enjoy the pool a bit more, DTD, walk around Crescent Lake and enjoy all the resorts in that area, take a spin on the monorail, etc. The possibilities are endless, so I guess we’re all going to have to wait and see what trouble we decide to get into. 
Well hit the road after breakfast, and just drive until we finally get home. I think this is going to be longest day of my life, 
but knowing that we’ll be back again in May should make the drive home a little bit easier to deal with. 
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