The Magical Mystery Trip - Day 3 Part 5 - Cali Grill **Updated 2/14 by Melissa** - Page 2 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
Trip with the in-laws (channeling Marie and Frank)...can't wait to hear the final title!!
Seriously, we have traveled to WDW several times with the in-laws and actually, had a blast! Glad Angie will be joining you, too.
danielle
__________________
~Shoot for the moon, if you miss, you will land among the stars~
Okay, picture this. I’m sitting at work behind my desk. I don’t have a class to teach until the kinders come at 10:15. I turned in my last final for grad classes two days ago and got my final grades yesterday. 4.0 still intact After today I have 6 days and some hours before we take off to WDW. All of this means something…….. It means that my brain has officially turned off of work mode and turned on to Disney mode. So what better to do when in complete slacker mode than to update my TR at work while I have some free time? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? I didn’t think so
So, how did we go about convincing the in-laws. We clubbed them over the head, drugged them, and played subliminal messages into their ears one night. Huh? What did I just say? I wasn’t supposed to tell anybody that part……..
Really though, it took a bit of work on our part. A)I created a couple of handouts (I’m such a teacher) to show the benefits of staying at the fabulous Beach Club or Boardwalk Inn. We knew one of the persuading factors was Epcot, so we had to pick a resort in that area.
2) my in-laws don’t go anywhere if they don’t go in style. So we knew it had to be a deluxe.
And D) (no I haven’t lost my mind, I’ve just already watched Home Alone like 5 times since Thanksgiving)… Anyway, And D) my in-laws drink like fish (and I myself am a self proclaimed lush) and since my FIL walks into a restaurant or room and pretty much just starts going “beer, beer, beer, beer” we knew we had to use that as another deciding factor. So of course what gift did I bring him back from our July trip??? Why the one liter mug from the Biergarten of course with promises of an ADR there if they came with us in Dec. We also talked up the fact that walking around the World Showcase is like walking around downtown only you can carry your beverages around with you…..that seemed to really help our cause
So based on all the information above we came up with the resorts mentioned before. At first I considered getting a 1 bedroom villa. So I printed out that information (stolen, errr, I mean taken graciously from Allearsnet) on both resorts, included pictures and prices. When I first showed it to them my MIL immediately said we should get a 2 bedroom villa. Apparently she thinks we stink or something and wants as much space between us as possible Well once she said that I figured we might as well just get two rooms instead of a villa b/c the cost would be less.
My handouts must have worked b/c my FIL was even more into it and MIL was beginning to come around (probably only b/c my FIL rules the roost and told her she had to….that’s what I’m thinking). Anyhoo, the plan was to book the two rooms at the Beach Club and sit on our thumbs while we waited to see if an AP rate came out.
Well, instead of an AP rate coming out, a new rule came out about AP rates…. I’m telling you folks, you can blame me for that new rule. I am 100% positive my luck is what brought that thing about. I mean I finally buy myself an AP and hope to reap its benefits….and then BAM, new rule! One room discount per AP. Thanks a lot Disney gods….Thanks for smiling down on me after I told my in-laws I could get them a discount.
However, since an AP rate still hadn’t come out when we booked, we used my FIL’s AAA card and saved a little. Finally, an AP rate came out and we were able to save a little more on our room and we stuck the 'rents with their pitiful little AAA rate We're so nice
Meanwhile, we had been talking to Angie about the fact she would down there right before we would and we were afraid our trips wouldn't coincide. So after some persuasion on our part we talked her into staying with us at the BC so she could save some moolah therefore being able to extend her trip!! She had her own issues with lodging but finally we were able to get something set in stone and get her added to our ressie.
So we had somewhere to sleep, next we had to figure how much my in-laws would want to play…. To get a parkhopper or not to get a parkhopper, that’s the question……
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.
I am glad I am not the only slacker at work today! I too am sitting at my desk waiting for my next class to begin. We leave in 7 days and that is all I can think about!
Just catching up! Great start, Melissa! I can totally understand your DFIL's for his team. When DH & I became engaged, my father handed me the Red Sox schedule and told me to plan around the season ticket plan he has! Sorry to hear you weren't able to get the AP rate for your ILs too. Can't wait to hear more of your plans!
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Our wedding day just happened to be on the day of the biggest game of the year: The Clemson/Carolina game. He made many comments that we better be glad our wedding was in the afternoon and the game was at night. That night, at our after reception party (Thrown by my in-laws) we have pictures of the family sitting around, me in my dress, enjoying a drink and each other's company, and then there's my FIL, staring intently at the football game on the big screen.........I'll have to find that picture, I think my MIL has it.
I totally finally found that picture....well I can't take credit for the find, that was Andy's good deed for the day! But anyway, here it is.....
Look at that intense expression on his face as we all sit around and laugh about it
Andy just added that "that face only comes around once a year, just like Christmas" b/c we just saw that same face two weeks ago during this year's Clemson/Carolina game....
Okay, I have to add this.... the reason Andy found that picture is b/c he's been working on a slideshow for my MIL. Her 60th birthday is tomorrow and we're going down for her party. He made the slideshow out of all the pictures from when she was a baby until now.......so we came across a couple doozies....
First, you will see what I mean about the lushness of our family...
Please note that her pal is holding on to a copy of the Mamas and the Papas album while DMIL is holding on to a can of Bud with her short short hippie dress
And here she is with another pal.....holding....well..... need I say more??? (she still drinks gin to this day...)
And this one is just a nerdy shot of DFIL trying to look all cool back in the day.
And just to prove again I wasn't kidding about the Clemson tiger obsession...
That's DBIL on the left and little brother Andy on the right, all decked out in their tiger paw best....
We just wanted you to see a little more of where we come from and we've gotten ourselves into
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.
About This Page: 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
After today I have 6 days and some hours before we take off to WDW. All of this means something…….. 
It means that my brain has officially turned off of work mode and turned on to Disney mode. So what better to do when in complete slacker mode than to update my TR at work while I have some free time? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? I didn’t think so 
We also talked up the fact that walking around the World Showcase is like walking around downtown only you can carry your beverages around with you…..that seemed to really help our cause 
We're so nice 
Sounds like it's going to be a fun trip 
I too am sitting at my desk waiting for my next class to begin. We leave in 7 days 
for his team. When DH & I became engaged, my father handed me the Red Sox schedule and told me to plan around the season ticket plan he has! 
Sorry to hear you weren't able to get the AP rate for your ILs too. Can't wait to hear more of your plans!
Linear Mode
