The 'Finally, No diaper bag needed' PTR 9/26-10/2 - Page 3 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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.
Location: after years of cold IL winters I'm happy to now be in sunny Cocoa, FL
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We leave in 2 days.... I can't believe it!
I got a good jump on packing but still have a lot to accomplish. My goal is to have it all done by bed time tonight...
Going to clean out the van this morning - always better to start out a trip with a clean van, even if the kids to seem to trash it anyways. I ordered a few organizers from OneStepAhead and they came yesterday. I got 2 that hang on the back of the seats and have like 13 different sized storage pockets and then one box-type that can sit on the ground between the 2 seats in the middle of the van to hold snacks or maybe the kids Nintendo DSs and games... I can't stand a dirty car/van so I hope these help.
We tend to try to leave at night - this way the kids are only up for a few hours and then sleep for a good 8-10 hours of the trip. I also bought the new Tinkerbell & the Great Fairy Rescue movie and didn't tell them yet. I thought a new movie or 2 might keep their attention well since they haven't seen it yet. (I know Tinkerbell is technically a "girl movie" but my 2 younger boys will still watch it and enjoy it. Tink is pretty spunky so I don't feel like its tooooooo girly for them. Husband kinda rolls his eyes but he'll live)
A little leary because the hat for DH's Jafar costume for MNSSHP hasn't arrived yet. Hope the package shows up today! Also, my MIL was supposed to have finished the actual costume yesterday but I haven't seen it yet. I hope its awesome!
My newest drama is trying to decide which stroller to bring. I have 2 double strollers - one is a Combi side-by-side and the other is Contours tandem (one in front of other). The Combi is super light, folds up much smaller, and the bigger boys can actually recline all the way down to sleep if needed - but Combi doesn't have cup holders, has small amount of storage space and can be a bit harder to push around since its such a lightweight stroller. My other stroller is nice because it has great cupholder and storage space and the seats can be switched around to face both directions (so both kids can face forward or backwards, or they can face each other, or they can sit back to back- this is good when they seem to want to argue) - but this stroller is just so much bigger and can be a bit of a pain to get on/off trams or buses, etc. Oh, and the boys don't seem to sleep as comfortably in it. I guess I think I am leaning towards taking the combi but this decision just keeps bothering me... guess we'll see how much stuff we have when we pack up and see how much room is left. DSIL wants us to take a bag or 2 for her so she don't have to check luggage on airplane so we'll see how much she shows up with....
So, bascially to recap plans for the day I need to clean & organize the van and I will prob even go fill up on gas just to be ahead of the game, finish packing, transfer all the pics on my memory card for my camera so that I can take a million new pics on vacation, and follow-up with MIL on DH's costume. Oh, and I need to find my halloween totes in the garage and pull out the boys trick or treat bags. And... LOL I'm sure there's much more but that's all I can wrap my head around for now!
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"With kids the days are long - but the years are short."
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.
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Location: after years of cold IL winters I'm happy to now be in sunny Cocoa, FL
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JUST pulled up at my dad's house in Cocoa, FL! Its been a looooong 24 hours in the car... and had a last minute "guest" hop in the car to ride along with us.... will have to explain it all when we get back!
SO EXCITED for this upcoming week!
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"With kids the days are long - but the years are short."