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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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There are always people out there who will understand and those who wont. Unfortunately, it always seems like in the times we need people to understand (meltdowns and such) the people surrounding us are not the type!
Be strong, Tabitha! Everyone has had great suggestions!
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Has anyone stayed at the Wilderness Lodge Club Level recently? I have booked a trip for there next year and I have been reading mixed reviews of the resort, any recent reviews would be helpful.
Agreed - I understand you wanting the shirt, to make people understand and back off. But that's their problem, not yours.
My sentiments EXACTLY. I totally get where you are coming from, my DS (7) is autistic so I have been where you are with the stares. It used to bother me in the beginning but I've come to realize it is what it is and not my issue. I had gotten my son a button that said "I'm not misbehaving, I'm Autistic, please be patient". Once I got it, took a look and realized: here I am trying to do typical things with him that typical kids do and I'm gonna go and label him for all the world to see & make a judgement BEFORE they even "meet" him? Nope, not gonna pigeonhole him. He will always have a battle ahead of him but doesn't need to be publically labeled. Know what I mean? He has made leaps and bounds from where he was and we couldn't be prouder. That doesn't mean he doesn't still have issues in public. His most recent is when he hears babies/kids cry, he will scream "COVER MY EARS". Yeah, that gets the looks but I don't care anymore. I cover his ears and off we go.
I guess my rambling point is: People will react the way they'll react and anything you "say" or do will not change that. It's how YOU react that makes all the difference. My DD(10) has gotten to the point now of telling overly eager starers "My brother has autism, that's why he's doing (blank)..." I asked her why she felt the need to tell them and she said "Mommy, I want them to know WHY Sean is doing what he's doing and maybe they won't stare next time". Out of the mouths of babes.
I'm so glad I saw this post because I was about to post something about Zoey and I have been feeling really down about her situation lately. Thanks. I i wsh you all the best.
I'm so glad I saw this post because I was about to post something about Zoey and I have been feeling really down about her situation lately. Thanks. I i wsh you all the best.
I'm so sorry to hear that you've been feeling down about the situation. I hope things start looking brighter soon.
Please continue to take your children out to restaurants. How else are they going to learn how to behave out in public, regarless of whether or not they have a disability?
My DS's are now young adults and both have special needs. We have taken them everywhere ... movies, restaurants, long car trips, boat rides, jet skis, Disney, airplanes, Las Vegas, etc. Our very first cruise was in February (not Disney) and I was unsure how they would react to the motion of the ship, activities, etc. as well as how the other passengers would react to them. So many passengers talked to me about my DS's and made comments on how well behaved they were, how they thought their special needs grandchild would love a cruise especially after my sons' examples, etc. It made me want to cry I was so happy. Finally it seemed what we had worked so hard on for so many years finally paid off and people noticed! Passengers even talked to me in the elevator when I was alone about them.
So, go for it and don't fear what other people might think negatively. Your children will be much better off in the end if they learn now.
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Lots of for you and your family! When I was a teenager and in my early 20's I cared for a child who was autistic, developmentally delayed and deaf. She was a handful, but I never let it get to me. She signed a little, but not much. And she was BIG for her age. People would STARE at me when I let her have her fits, but it was part of her "action plan". Let them stare. They stare because it is outside of THEIR NORMAL! I don't care what other people think. I took her EVERYWHERE!
One thing that was popular in my crowd of friends at the time was a slogan : WHY BE NORMAL. I had it on a pin that I LOVED to wear. C's mom loved that I took PRIDE in bringing her around like a 'friend', and not a "special needs kid". Why be normal... normal is as normal does!
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Our last WDW trip as a family 
for you and your family! When I was a teenager and in my early 20's I cared for a child who was autistic, developmentally delayed and deaf. She was a handful, but I never let it get to me. She signed a little, but not much. And she was BIG for her age. People would STARE at me when I let her have her fits, but it was part of her "action plan". Let them stare. They stare because it is outside of THEIR NORMAL! I don't care what other people think. I took her EVERYWHERE! 
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