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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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I like the idea of the egg hunt! I haven't been so lucky in the past on surprising my DD with WDW trip. It is very hard to keep secrets from her. She tends to snoop around too much.
I had one friend tell her kids they were bringing grama and granpa to the airport but when they get there they told the kids to get out and say goodby and her parents got back in the car and her and her hubby said come on kids let's go disney she said it was really cool
My son is a July 3rd baby too. He was a 7.3.07 baby. I hope you have a wonderful trip. It's nice to see someone elses child with the same b-day as my son
My sweet boy was born in 96 ;-) It is nice to see another lil boy that has the same bday! Just think that you will get to surprise him in the future with a birthday trip!
Lots of great ideas! I suprised my kids with their first ever trip to Disney World last year. (the kids were 10, 8, and 7) I didn't have any extravagant plan; but I literaly waited until the morning of the trip to tell them. They had no idea! I woke them up at like 4am (we had an early flight) and they were bouncing off the walls. I will never forget it!
My sweet boy was born in 96 ;-) It is nice to see another lil boy that has the same bday! Just think that you will get to surprise him in the future with a birthday trip!
Your son is the same age as my little brother. His b-day though is 10.30.96. My son last summer got to take a trip to Boston for my sister's Wedding and celebrate his b-day with family and then 2 days with us on his way home to Sesame Place. This year another Wedding a Week after his 2nd B-day, and his 3rd B-day Disney Style early (We're going a month early for our Anniversary/Honeymoon and to celebrate his B-day with Mickey and Friends). I was so excited to see your son had the same b-day as my son. I haven't met too many people who's children had the same b-day as him. I blow Surprises so badly that as we plan our Trip, I'll drop little hints and let my mom and her boyfriend show up for a day or so in Orlando and let him surprise him. She doesn't see him enough so it will be a nice way for her to see him within a 2 hour drive from where she lives.
The way my parents surprised my sister and I for our first trip to Disney years ago was we had a LightBright in my sister's room and my mom snuck it out and put the pegs in to make Mickey. When we woke up we were still oblivious and didn't know where we were going until we got there. We had no clue our Aunt, Uncle, & cousin were flying in from Chicago to join us. Everything was already packed and in the van, including the double stroller. We went for my sister's 4th Birthday. I was 5 or 6 then. It's one trip I still haven't forgotten to this very day. It was the only time we had a dining experience too and Chip & Dale came to the table with a cake for my sister and other characters showed up and sang Happy Birthday. We have so many wonderful pictures from that trip.
Just wanted to mention that my local Walgreens stores all have some adorable Disney Easter baskets. Each looks like a stuffed Disney character. They're small but cute, and only $10 each. It might be fun to find a way to incorporate some of these baskets into your plan!
__________________
DD and DS, May 2008
"I am purple today; Bright and happy like a butterfly in the air." -Kira Willey
Just wanted to mention that my local Walgreens stores all have some adorable Disney Easter baskets. Each looks like a stuffed Disney character. They're small but cute, and only $10 each. It might be fun to find a way to incorporate some of these baskets into your plan!
Great idea. Target sells them too. Last year for Easter we bought our son a Pooh Easter Basket and a Tigger with bunny ears on it. He loves his easter basket.
We've done Surprises on Christmas (Gift Bag Filled with Disney Travel Books/Toys/Games with a Note ""Good for One Family Trip to Disney" & On Birthdays (They thought we were crazy at the Bakery when we wanted the Disney Msg. written on the cake ) about Upcoming trips
The best one was when our DS was younger and we were able to do the ol' "Surprise in the Morning when they wake up" and it was the most magical thing ever
Unfortunately he's older now and likes to plan the trip just as much as us so I think he would have a heart attack if he found out the morning of that we were going to Disney!
My kids were 5 & 7 last year for their first trip, and loved earning spending money, learning about the parks, choosing their priorities, etc. I looove to plan, and I love to talk about it. I never would have been able to keep my mouth shut.
My bf just did the "hey, I didn't get you out of school to go to a doctor's appointment, we're actually driving to the airport" with her 6-year-old daughter. I told her that if I did that to my now-8-year-old daughter, she'd be carrying a giant duffle around with her for the rest of her life - "just in case." She needs to be prepared, and she'd go into shock if I surprised her with something so major.
BTW, my bf's daughter just kept saying, "but what about my doctor's appointment?" It took HOURS for it to sink in...
My sister does a MEAN Mickey impersonation and she called them about a month before we left to tell them how happy "he" was that they were coming for a visit!!! They about DIED they were so happy!
My sister does a MEAN Mickey impersonation and she called them about a month before we left to tell them how happy "he" was that they were coming for a visit!!! They about DIED they were so happy!
I'd love to hear it!
Oh she needs a 800 number so we can call and have her make magical memories!!
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