Celebrating as One Big Happy Family: 5/10/14 - 5/18/14 - Page 5 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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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
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Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
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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.
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So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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I would feel the same way you did but probably would of done the same thing. It is her actual birthday why can't she celebrate it alone and then do something later for both girls at another time.
Aww, Melissa you're gonna make me cry. Loved seeing the photos of Hope through the years. But that last one, that's the one that got me.
I love all the surprises for Hope's birthday! And I totally understand your point of wanting to celebrate Hope's birthday separately. But, under the same circumstances, I would've done the same thing as you. Glad you are able to do things specifically for her special day.
Sorry. I was actually getting a little emotional when I was typing it up. Thanks for not thinking that I'm being a birthday snob.
Quote:
Originally Posted by chezp
What a great plan for Hope's birthday and I'm so glad it all worked out for you!
I tell you what, looking at those photos of Hope, she looks so much older than she is. She looks like a real young lady.
Thanks so much, and thank you for your sweet words about Hope. She does look older than she is, and acts it too!
Quote:
Originally Posted by disneydreamer33
Glad all the plans worked out for Hope's birthday! Love all the pics through the years!
Thank you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by xwewhisper
Great plan for the birthday and loved the pictures through the years!!
Thanks!
Quote:
Originally Posted by lfredsbo
Awe, Melissa - you are making me cry AGAIN!!! They do grow up WAY to fast!!! Just wait till she is turning 15! That's what I have to (not) look forward to this summer . It goes way too fast!!!
Sorry to you too. I can get a bit sappy at times. And no, I don't want to even think about her turning 15! You poor thing.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nanajoyx2
Melissa, I know how you feel about the FP+ mess. Have pity on me because I have to make the arrangements for 14 of us for our trip in August. Our grandchildren range in age from 8 to 15 and only one of them is a girl. She desperately wants to see Elsa and Anna, so wish me luck in getting that FP. She is the youngest and always gets special attention when at Disney because she is surrounded by all her boy cousins and her brother.
14!!! I do have pity on you...a lot of pity! Good luck with all of it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by KMB733
Glad the plans and surprises worked out for Hope's birthday. The pictures of Hope through the years are great!
Thank you.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lauriep
Pass the tissues, please! Wonderful photos of Hope through the years, gone by too fast. What a beautiful, sweet girl. I think the plans as they finally ended up will be great. She'll be so excited to see that cake. Worth it!
Apparently I know how to make people cry! Thank you though for your sweet words. I hope she always stays this sweet, but we still have lots and lots of girl stages to go through.
Quote:
Originally Posted by pamcarey
I love the pictures of Hope through the years! She is looking so grown up now. It's an obvious difference even since your cruise TR. I know how bittersweet that is. I was singing the lyrics of You'll Be in My Heart... love it!
I hate it. I wish she could stay little forever, but I guess I'm just going to have to learn to deal with it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cam22
I think you have absolutely the best birthday planned for Hope! Hope is blooming into the most beautiful girl. I especially love the portraits of her at nearly 5 that you've taken.
Thank you so much. I got a new camera last week, so I'm hoping my picture taking gets even better from here on out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cubfancolleen
Great birthday plans, and I love the cake!!
Hope is so photogenic!
I hear you on the angst over them growing up! My "baby" will be 18 on his next birthday, and one more year and it's off to college! Luckily my other baby has a bit more time - but she'll be a freshman in September. Where DOES the time go?!
I can't even imagine dealing with saying goodbye to your "baby". Mine just registered for kindergarten and I hated it. College? Heck no!
Quote:
Originally Posted by JoanneS
Your photos are terrific! I have to admit, I wouldn't like sharing my birthday, either, but you've made some wonderful birthday plans.
Thank you so much.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colexis Mom
Glad you worked out all the plans for Hope's birthday! Love the cake! Great pictures of Hope thru the years!
Thanks!
Quote:
Originally Posted by jackid2
Love the pictures of Hope!!
Thank you so much.
Quote:
Originally Posted by iwonathomas
OMG the pictures of Hope are just adorable.
I would feel the same way you did but probably would of done the same thing. It is her actual birthday why can't she celebrate it alone and then do something later for both girls at another time.
Thank you. And thanks for understanding where I'm coming from with the birthday issue. At least I know I wasn't being unreasonable.
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We are now in the single digits!!! Well, we have been for a couple days now, but I was so busy over the weekend that I really didn't have much time to celebrate.
I had so many errands to run, with this being the last weekend I could do that, plus we mulched all of our flower beds, and I got most of the packing done. I don't want to worry about having to do it on Friday night after work. I'd rather spend that time relaxing. I also found out over the weekend that the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is now officially opening on May 28th, which I'm not real happy about, but I'm praying that they'll do a soft opening while we're there because I'm not sure when the next time is that we'll be in Disney World.
Something else I forgot to mention was that the Easter Bunny brought her a special autograph book, bathing suit and pin lanyard. Unfortunately, the only thing I have a picture of right now is the bathing suit.
I was so happy I found that when I did! The lanyard and autograph book I bought on Etsy. The lanyard has Elsa all over it, and the autograph book is personalized with all of the princesses on the front of it, and has pockets to hold little keepsakes she gets on vacation.
And also, because I started this PTR so late, here's Hope starting the first day of her countdown calendar (taken with my iphone).
And just for a few laughs, I came across these old pictures of my brother. God he would kill me if he knew I had posted them, but because it's been a while since he's been to WDW, I just had too.
At River Country when it was still open
At Epcot
And then there's these pictures that I had to share because I'm just so proud of her. There from Hope's dance recital last weekend where she tap danced to the Doc McStuffins theme song. She hated tap at first because she thought she couldn't do it, but I made her stick with it and told her she could pick another type of dance next time. She did such a great job and followed the steps so well. I was a blubbering mess watching her, but I knew how far she had come at that moment.
This is when she first came out on stage. You can tell she's so nervous, but she did such a great job once the music started.
Single digits?! Yea!
I think you are totally in the right to have Hope have her own celebration - even if it wasn't on her actual birthday. She deserves some special attention too!
Shoot! I make a spreadsheet for every trip - I can't live/plan without it! At least now I have your input on the FP+ before I have to worry about it myself.
You're going to have such a great time!
I love Hope in her dance outfit and seeing her grow before our eyes. I can't believe my baby is going to be a 1st grader in a few months?! He seems to grow a few inches every day too!
Hope looks so cute in her dance outfit! I am glad she ended up liking tap. Just wait as she grows up dancing. My oldest DD Lauren has been doing it since she was 3 and she is going to be 14!
I hope the Mine Train has a soft opening while you are there. I told the girls the other day that if we were still going in May as originally planned we would probably have missed it. Hope you get lucky!!!
Congratulations on finding the Frozen merchandise! That's a real coup. Hope looks wonderful in her tap outfit. So satisfying when you see them stick with something that's hard and master it. A huge life lesson!
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And Miss Hope looks adorable in her dance costume!!! Glad that she performed even though she had a bit of stage fright! They are so darn cute at that age! My daughter dances, and it is crazy rehearsal schedule right now, and I still love watching all the younger ones, some of them totally ham it up, and others just stand there like a deer in headlights!
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PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Your busy weekend sounds a bit like ours as we spread 21 bags of mulch over our landscaping and flower beds. Hope is so adorable in her tap costume. Only 5 days now!
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I was actually getting a little emotional when I was typing it up. 
Thanks for not thinking that I'm being a birthday snob. 
Hope is blooming into the most beautiful girl. I especially love the portraits of her at nearly 5 that you've taken. 
Luckily my other baby has a bit more time - but she'll be a freshman in September. Where DOES the time go?!
God he would kill me if he knew I had posted them, but because it's been a while since he's been to WDW, I just had too. 
Disney Magic - Oct 2015
Liz 
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