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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Just saw this. You have definitely had a full plate for a while. Your job sound very, very stressful which always seems to happen when things at home get out of balance. So happy for both of you that you have found ways to help Evan with school. Been there, done that! nothing like starting your day with leaving a crying child where they don't want to be. I really hear you on the changing relationship with a parent. It is so difficult to watch the ones that have always been your support to now need you so much. I am sure that is alot of the reason so many elderly folks are grumpy. As hard as it is for us just imagine what it makes them feel. You sound like you are handling everything like a champ though. : pixie:
May things continue to improve.
I am so glad to hear Evan has improved so much. I know this was a huge area of stress for you last year. So sorry to hear about your money m. My mom has come to rely I me like that too, and while it is good to have family so close I know it saps every last ounce of energy sometimes in an ready packed schedule.
Before I begin I wanted to update on this weekend. It is trip related too. Back in February as Evan was getting on his medicine and things were still rather iffy as to his daily behavior, we calculated that there was 18 school days from that day until spring break. If he could get 17 out of 18 daily stamps for good behavior I would get him a new iPod. Right now he is using his cousins hand-me-down one and I have no Apple products so no Apple account so we haven’t downloaded anything new onto this device. He is just using whatever she had on it. It has been fine but I thought I would get him something updated for the long car ride so this could mean I could get it early for him plus reward him for his hard work.
On day 2 he lost his stamp for the day so for the past few weeks it has been very tentative about his stamps. As the days drew on and he earned more and more stamps I was then afraid he would miss on like day 17 and then be totally upset with himself. When his report card came home I told him THAT had earned him his new iPod and then with stamp #18 I gave him an iTunes gift card.
So on Saturday we went to the Apple store and Evan got a new iPad Mini and we wiped clean the old iPod and he kept that but it is now more “his”. Needless to say we spent most of the weekend playing with that and me trying to set up accounts and device restrictions and what-not.
We also went to see the movie Home which was really cute. He now wants to see Blart Mall cop 2, it is rated PG so I need to check Common Sense Media.org to see why. I’m OK with bathroom humor but not sure if there is cursing or other things that many be too offensive. PG is usually OK for him but I still need to check it out.
Now onto day 2.
Thursday 6/18
This should have been Evan’s last day of school but it is now a half day but he will again be missing it. Today is the official start of my mom’s reunion. I have no idea how many people may already be here or how many will be arriving this day. There are no official plans for her today so I’m sure she will be visiting with everyone as they arrive.
The hotel has a continental breakfast so after getting some grub Evan and I should be on the road around 8am. I figure one stop about halfway between Savannah and Disney. That puts us around the Saint Augustine area and then arriving into WDW at about 1:30.
We are staying on property with the meal plan but I’m gonna take him to the McDonald’s near the All Star Resorts and pay OOP for lunch. Then we are heading directly over to the raceway and I’m letting Evan do the Richard Petty Jr Ride along. This is something I wanted to do last year and then try for the trip this year (both or which got canceled). Now that they are closing I have to get it in now. I think he will love it. This is a surprise for Evan and he doesn’t even know they offer this so if something happens and we can’t do it there will be no disappointment. I truly hope we can get in an out before the afternoon thunderstorms as I don’t think they will run when the track is wet and this really is the only day we can do this.
After the ride along we are checking in at Art of Animation in a Little Mermaid room.
I have never stayed here (nor Evan) I’ve been several times to Fort Wilderness and spent one night in All Star Music and have been off site and also to Caribbean Beach resort. Last trip we stayed at Shades of Green. Last summer we again were going to do SOG and if we went for a big trip this summer it was going to be POP.I’m a little leery of the value properties. When we stayed in ALMu it wasn’t that great. There were 4 adults and thank God we only did one night because it was cramped quarters. Plus the walk to the room was a mile and half I swear. They had some sort of automatic air freshener in the room and it gave me a headache. So I haven’t wanted to go back.
Because this is just a quick trip – 3 nights and it is just Evan and I, I figured let’s try value again. I thought about POP but I know Evan would love to walk around and see everything at AOA. He loves the movie Cars. AOA was only a few bucks more than POP so I booked it. We are in a Little Mermaid room which Evan wasn’t happy about but I was not going to spend the extra money for the Cars rooms.
Once we arrive at the hotel and check in the room should be ready, or almost ready. We will just hang out at the hotel for a bit, swim, relax, walk around, arcade, whatever. I’d like to see if they still offer the animation class in the lobby and try that.
Dinner tonight has been an adventure. When we first decided on this trip I asked Evan if he wanted to do a character meal and he said yes. Last trip on our first night we did dinner at Chef Mickey’s and he wanted to do that again. We were already well within the 180 days so I was doubtful I would get anything. I did manage to get dinner at 7:50pm I wasn’t happy but I took it.He also wanted to do the Rain Forest Café one day while there. So I was working around all sorts of different options. I really didn’t want dinner so late on our first night as I thought I’d be tired. I was stalking Disney dining when a 6:40pm opened up and I grabbed that.
Right now I’m holding that ADR for Chef Mickey’s but pretty sure I will cancel it later on. I really just have it as a backup but you will see all our meal plans as the days unfold.
So back to dinner tonight…I have the Landry’s card so we will be doing the Rain Forest Café. I don’t have an ADR I figure I will check last minute or just go as a walkup when we are hungry. We are going to the AK one not DTD as I just don’t want to get into that mess. I figure AK closes fairly early and many people leave in the afternoon so dinner as a walkup with the card shouldn’t be too bad (but still have Chef Mickey’s).
You all know how it goes you think you have everything all set and worked out and then you start thinking and you end up changing all your plans around.
After dinner back to AOA for a good night sleep because we are going to my happy place in the morning.
Coming up next
The Details…Day 3, Friday 6/19 Magic Kingdom!!
PS: knowing that my mom got a better report than we were expecting from the doctor has made this trip seem closer/more real. I had already said a few things to Evan about “we need to see how Grandmom is doing” I was afraid they were going to change her medicine and then we would need to see what side effects she would have but her spirits are up and she is eating again and just overall feeling better so we are still a-go for now.
I also really –REALLY need to get some new pictures posted for you all too.
Bravo to Evan for earning his iPod! That will really help with the ride down. Your plans are looking good. You're right, though, that "thinking" is fatal to making final plans!
Hi Holly! I've been gone from the boards too, but plan on hanging around more. I'm excited to see a PTR from you right off the bat! Congrats* on Evan doing better in school, and more importantly, starting to like school!
Holly so great to see your back here, so sorry for so many things all hitting you at once. I am so happy Evan is doing better, my nephew had the same issues, started creeping up around the same age. My sister did the same thing, really changing schedules, how she did things with him at home but school was another story. The medication did wonders for him as well. He is in High School now and an A student - such a difference.
So glad you got a good report for mom, sending continued pixies and prayers for her.
A few days at Disney I think will be well deserved for the both of you. Really enjoying hearing your plans.
Friday is officially Evan’s last day of school – what a way to spend it…at the Magic Kingdom.
My FP+ selection is still not open yet but hoping for times around 10am to noon and then grabbing more at lunch time. Shooting for Tomorrowland Speedway, Evan loved this last time and it can get so crowded because it is a slow loader, Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear.
My plan for today is to be at the park for the opening show and rope drop.We only really have one full day here so I want to be there as early as possible. Since EMH are scheduled for the MK the day before and after we will be visiting, I’m hoping it will be a little less crowded today.
Last year when I was supposed to go to WDW a colleague of mine at work went down in the spring and I asked him to get me autograph books, Epcot passports and pens. I still have them, and the receipt so I’m going to try and return them this morning at the Emporium – well will actually try at hotel shop first. Keeping my fingers crossed that we get a refund or store credit or something.
As soon as we get in we are booking it over to Peter Pan and 7D Mine Train. I hope what I have read online is correct and that we can use stand-by fairly quickly in the early hours.
We will then loop into Tomorrowland. I have lunch booked at The Plaza and then over to Tom Sawyer Island getting back in time for the Festival of Fantasy parade, after the parade we will see about heading back to the hotel for a swim or pushing on, afternoon thunderstorms may play in here too.
Dinner will be counter service at hotel or back in MK.
Later in the afternoon/evening we will take a train ride from Main Street to New Fantasyland and explore over there then move into Old Fantasyland.
Hopefully things will go well with this touring plan.
Even though this is a really quick trip for us there will be a ton of “firsts”
Everything in the New Fantasyland will be new for us. Last visit Dumbo was still in its old location and Snow White was still open and the construction walls were still up but Toontown was gone. Evan is looking forward to Goofy’s Barnstormer. Also new will be all the renovations around the Hub and the FOF parade. Evan was too little for Space Mountain last visit so this will be his first time and I didn’t get to do it last trip so this will be my first time since the renovations a few years back. Evan’s first at Tom Sawyer Island too and eating at the Plaza for both of us.
Evan is nervous about the Mountains. He is not a real adventuresome rider. I told him Space Mountain is a lot like the Flitzer. The Flitzer is a roller coaster at the local boardwalk. He has been on it many times and we have several pictures of him with a huge grin on his face. The only real difference is Space Mt is dark.
All the night-time shows I’m hoping to do tomorrow night but if the spirit moves us then we will do some tonight. I’d be happy if we get old/new Fantasyland and Tommorowland and Main Street all done today.
Coming up next
The Details…Day 4, Saturday 6/20, Legoland
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Disney Magic - Oct 2015
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