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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Hello, I figured I would get this PTR started considering that this trip is coming up fast!!! Like, 4 weeks from now, I hope to be sitting on a beach with an adult beverage of some sort in my hand hearing nothing but laughter and the ocean!
Okay – back to today’s reality! Had to snap out of it for a minute!
We have friends that are those types of friends that you hit it off immediately and have been friends for a long time now, and know that we will be friends for many, many more years to come! And for several years they have been asking us to do a vacation with them, and it just never seems to work out ~ our kids school schedules don’t coincide, one of us can’t get the time off, we already had something planned………..you know how it goes . Well, this past fall while visiting with them (they live about 3 hours from us) we realized that our girls had the exact same week off for Spring Break and there was a lead to a fantastic sounding all-inclusive resort in the Dominican Republic……….so one thing led to another and next thing we all knew was that we were booking a Spring Break vacation!!!!
Before I get to the where/when/what I will back track for a moment or two here, and introduce the gang and how we became friends, etc.
Our Family:
I am Lisa (42) ~ wife, mom, social worker by day, wanna be photographer, scrapbooker, and traveler by heart! My favorite place to travel is Disney……so this trip is taking me a bit out of my comfort zone!
Then there is my husband, Scott (45….almost 46 at time of trip) ~ husband (already said that), father, Career Firefighter, boater, giant kid at heart……with his favorite place to travel being Disney….although he really enjoys cruises also!
Emily (14) is our daughter ~ she is a freshman in High School and lives to Dance! She has been dancing since she was 3, and is very involved in her studio, being a member of their company which is very involved in community service (they are not a competing studio). She also loves to travel and explore the world ~ and another huge Disney lover! She seems to find hidden Mickey’s where ever she may go!
Their family:
Cindy (43) ~ a wife, mostly stay at home mom, but recently taken up being a nanny, an animal lover, wine enthusiast ~ and also loves to travel!
Steve (42) ~ a husband, father, technical manager for major television network (has 2 Emmy’s for his work!), fitness addict, and enjoys the finer things in life!
Kayla (14) ~ daughter, in the 8th grade (due to late birthday), aspiring actress/musician (currently has a lead role in her school production!), loves make up and fashion!
Now, how did we all become friends??? Back in the day………..well 20 years ago (we realized this past weekend, that this year is 20 years we have been friends!!!)………Cindy and Steve moved to CT from NJ for work, and Cindy & I ended up in the same office at the casino ~ instant friendship! Introduced the guys (our boyfriends at the time), they became friends, we spent a lot of time doing things together…fast forward a few years….Steve & Cindy were married, I was one of her bridesmaids (they had moved back to NJ by then, but that didn't stop us!), then a year later, Scott & I were married, she was one of my bridesmaids………couple more years..I got pregnant…………a few months later she got pregnant………our daughters are only 4 ˝ months apart.
Our daughters were introduced to each other when they were babies.
Although we only live about 3 hours from each other ~ schedules are always crazy trying to figure out when to visit and such – but we always manage to find a way! And we are always able to pick up right where we left off! Sometimes Cindy & I will have “wine and chat” evenings on the phone……………they are the ones who got us drinking wine after all !
Usually our visits with each other are like “mini vacations” – as when we visit there, we will often go see/do the “jersey” stuff ~ and when they come here, we take them to see/do the “CT” stuff! The 4 adults did vacation in Vegas together before…………that was a blast!!! It was a surprise birthday gift for Scott – he had no idea where he & I were going until we got to the airport…..and then when we landed he had no idea that Steve & Cindy were waiting at bag claim for us and they “accidently” bumped into him! Their flight had arrived 20 minutes before ours! Cindy & I had planned the whole thing ! It was an amazing trip with lots of laughs, drinks, and dancing!!!
So we are very much looking forward to this upcoming trip! We always manage to have a great time together ~ we all love great food, entertainment, and fun!
Up Next: Where are we going?
__________________
Lisa Co-Guide to Sharing the Adventure: Disney World Trip Reports
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Hello, I figured I would get this PTR started considering that this trip is coming up fast!!! Like, 4 weeks from now, I hope to be sitting on a beach 
with an adult beverage 
of some sort in my hand hearing nothing but laughter and the ocean!
Had to snap out of it for a minute! 
. Well, this past fall while visiting with them (they live about 3 hours from us) we realized that our girls had the exact same week off for Spring Break and there was a lead to a fantastic sounding all-inclusive resort in the Dominican Republic……….so one thing led to another and next thing we all knew was that we were booking a Spring Break vacation!!!! 
Introduced the guys (our boyfriends at the time), they became friends, we spent a lot of time doing things together…fast forward a few years….Steve & Cindy were married, I was one of her bridesmaids (they had moved back to NJ by then, but that didn't stop us!), then a year later, Scott & I were married, she was one of my bridesmaids………couple more years..I got pregnant…………a few months later she got pregnant………our daughters are only 4 ˝ months apart. 
trying to figure out when to visit and such – but we always manage to find a way! And we are always able to pick up right where we left off! Sometimes Cindy & I will have “wine and chat” 
! It was an amazing trip with lots of laughs, drinks, and dancing!!! 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
PassPorter Guide Author
What! You're going to a place other than Disney! 
Can't wait to hear all about it! 
Holly: 
the picture of the girls as babies. This sounds like a friendship that was meant to be for sure!
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