Insert Original Title Here - A September 2013 TR - Page 8 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
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Sending you some hugs...I know this is a difficult time for you and you should know that a lot of us here are thinking of you and rooting you on! Continue with your encouragement and support and look forward to the goals you set together. If I could hug you through the computer I would!!
Your words of encouragement and support, and the pixies and through-the-computer hugs are more cherished and appreciated than you could possibly know!
David is going back to work tomorrow!
The doctor adjusted his meds so they aren't making him so miserable anymore. He says he still feels sick all day, but he says it's the kind of sick you can still eat with and not end up actually getting sick. He says he's getting used to it, and is hoping it lessens with time, but he prefers feeling a little nauseous to feeling "crazy."
He actually has some friends over tonight (!!!!!) so for the first time in WEEKS, I got the computer away from him. I'm hoping to be able to complete at least one update tonight! Wish me luck.
I woke up with the wake-up call at 6:30AM. I asked David to get up and get his shower, since I had showered the night before and wanted a little bit more sleep. Bri woke up as David headed to the bathroom, but I just brought her into bed with me and she went right back to sleep. At 7:30, I woke up to find David freshly showered but back in bed, and my baby girl snuggled up against him.
I got up and dressed and got ready to go. I walked back to the bed and was literally having a mental argument with myself. “I should let them sleep and just go on my own.” “No, I should wake them up and take them with me. I'm not brave enough to go on my own.” (Remember, I actually have anxiety issues as well, lol.) This went on for a couple of minutes with me dithering over the decision, and finally, before I could change my mind again, I grabbed up my bag and camera, made sure I had my phone and Magic Band on me, and resolutely marched out the door to try my hand at solo touring!
You would have laughed if you'd had a conversation with me at the bus stop, because I was so proud of myself, but I was also plainly a nervous wreck. I almost headed back to the room twice, but both times someone engaged me in casual conversation at the bus stop and I felt brave enough to stay.
Getting off of the bus on my own at DHS was a little exhilarating. It sounds so silly, but I'm the kind of person who doesn't even like running to the grocery store by myself. So heading into a theme park by myself for the first time made me feel crazy strong and confident. I distinctly remember muttering to myself (with a goofy grin on my face) as I entered the park “You've got this girl!”
I headed straight for Toy Story Mania, and rode it twice in a row! The first time there was practically no wait, and it was so much fun I decided to ride it again even though there was a line. I didn't have anyone with me, so I didn't feel like I was on a schedule, lol. The second time, while I was waiting in line, the couple behind me were making me roll my eyes. It was a kind of older couple, and the woman complained for the entire 20 minutes to half an hour that we waited!
“It's too hot.” (Um, it's Florida?) “There are too many children here. Their parents are silly for pulling them out of school.” (Where I live, school wasn't in yet.) “Those kids are too loud!” (As she loudly complains and bothers everyone within a forty foot radius.)
It was making me a bit anxious, and I didn't want her to spoil my first solo tour with a panic attack, so I finally turned around and politely asked how her morning was going. She seemed a little taken aback. “Fine......How's yours going?” “Fine. Is this your first time in Florida?”
I just had to keep her talking, even though she plainly thought I was nuts, because I couldn't stand to hear her complain for another second. I only had to talk to her for two minutes, because it was my turn to get in a car pretty quickly, but my goodness...I really hope she was just having a bad morning and doesn't always go through life like that!
After my second ride (I wrote down 131,500 next to this note...I'm assuming that's my score...), I wandered down to check out The Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow. I was much more impressed by this experience than the previous Narnia thing they had there. It was so cute, and I kept cracking up laughing. I decided I'd have to bring David back later.
I checked the time and decided I'd better head back to the resort. We had some FP+ times coming up, and I didn't want David to miss it. I headed back to the bus, and was the only person who was waiting to leave so early in the day. The bus driver joked I must be fast if I'd already gotten everything done.
I know my solo morning was short, but I am still happy I did it, because now I know that I can!
I called David from the bus and asked him to please give Briana a bath and get her dressed and put on her sunscreen, because we were going to need to hurry to make it back to DHS on time. If David had been feeling 100%, I would have just had him come meet me, but I knew that would up his anxiety, so I just didn't even want to mess with that.
David was just getting her out of her bath when I got back to the room, so I got Bri dressed so that David could quickly get ready.
We got off of the bus with just 5 minutes to make it before the end of our FP+ window for RnRc. I asked David if he wanted to run for it, and he said “No, but let's go see if we can ride with the single rider line.” So we did that. I had a blast! David even let me go first.
David rode after me, and I was watching for his picture to come up on the screens. He had the BIGGEST grin on his face in his picture, and it made my heart so happy to see him smiling like his old self. Bri had some crackers and played peek-a-boo with me while we waited for him to come out.
We rode Star Tours next with our FP+ (taking turns, obviously). I had fun, but I wish David and I could have ridden together. Star Wars is something we both really enjoy, and I love seeing the look on his face when Vader grabs us or we're chasing through a battle.
We headed to Toy Story to use our FP+ there. (HA! Three rides in one day! I am so awesome. ) We gave Briana a pair of glasses, too, but she just played with them, obviously. My arm was tired from playing twice already, but I gave it my best shot. I got the beaver again.
David thought the Legend of Captain Jack Sparrow was cute, and thanked me for "bullying" him into experiencing it. (He was joking, I promise.)
We headed for a Friendship boat after that to go to Epcot. We had a nice conversation with a woman who was seated in a wheelchair near Bri's stroller. Bri was flirting up a storm with her, it was cute!
We got off the boat at the Yachtsmen stop, because David wanted to race the boat. “I think we can beat it, let's walk!” Silly man! But he was right. We didn't even really hurry, and we beat the boat by a lot!
We did practically have to run to make it to our Coral Reef reservation, and we ended up being 15 minutes late. Even being late, we were granted our request of sitting by the tank as the restaurant wasn't very crowded. I had Mahi Mahi, and David had lobster and pasta. Both were very good! I tried to feed Miss Briana, but she was more interested in throwing her food on the ground and eating her burp cloth. We played peek-a-boo throughout the meal and dessert to keep her entertained.
After our delicious lunch, we headed over to ride Journey Into Imagination with Figment. I know some of you are huge die-hard fans of this ride, but David and I rode this a couple years ago and both left it with grimaces of horror on our faces. That being said, riding it with Bri I enjoyed it a bit more, because I was watching her instead of the ride, and although she was very sleepy (she passed out in her stroller right after the ride), she was pretty fascinated, so her face was just precious. I asked David if riding it with Bri made him like it any better, and he gave me a stoney-faced and exaggerated “NO, it did not!” But then he laughed and kissed Briana's sleepy face, so I think he was lying.
Don't worry, I got her some shade right after I snapped the picture!
With our sleeping princess in her stroller, we headed to the British pavilion to stock up on our Twinings tea for the year. The plan was to head in to see the Voices of Liberty Choir (or, if they were still gone, whoever was there), but we couldn't take the stroller in. The CM at the door apologized, and said that if we wanted to wait until Briana woke up, the QS restaurant next door was air conditioned. We headed in there, and Bri was snoozing away, until the Color Guard came in and woke her up.
After getting Bri all set up with a fresh diaper, I fed her some yogurt, and then some turkey and rice.
I asked David what he wanted to do, and he said “Maelstrom, if they will let Bri on it.” So off we went.
Maelstrom was too loud for Briana, she was fussing and trying to bury her head in my shoulder. So I covered her ears, and then she was content to sit back and take it all in. I think she liked how colorful it was. She didn't have any problem with the Three Caballeros ride though – she giggled and bounced in our laps through that entire thing! We all left that ride smiling. I tweeted right after that ride: "In Mexico we rode the Three Cabelleros ride. Bri LOVED it. Big round fascinated eyes and ecstatic smiles. Who says Disney isn't for babies?" (Take that, rude Boma ladies! )
Rain had been threatening for a while, and when we walked outside after our ride in Mexico, it was POURING so I put the rain cover on Briana's stroller and we made a mad dash for the Fountain View. (This was their official opening day as a Starbucks.) We got soaked, but at least Bri was nice and dry under her cover.
Bri was done being in her stroller, so while we were waiting in line to order, David put her up on his shoulders. She thought this was great fun. I decided to try a Caramel Mocha Frap...it was so good! David had the same thing, but soy, since he is lactose intolerant.
I don't know what time this was, but it says in my notes that we headed back to the resort after this, because of the rain. It let up on our way out of the park, so we had some pics taken. These are some of my absolute favorites from the entire trip.
The photographer wanted to get one of just me and Bri. I thought this was awesome, as I am usually the one snapping pictures, and don't have a TON of us together. So I was happy to oblige. They turned out to be my favorite photos.
The photographer said "Does dad want some one on one shots too?" But David declined, saying (with a smile) "Dad's done with pictures today, but thank you."
David was tired and Bri needed another nap, so we headed out even though the rain had let up. I also noted that on the bus ride back to Pop, Briana threw an absolute fit because I wouldn't let her chew on the handrail leading up the steps to the back of the bus. Kids are so weird.
Back at the room, David fell asleep immediately. I battled with Bri for about half an hour but finally had her snoozing in her pack n' play after a while.
I was finally able to completely unpack and organize everything. We were going to leave a tip for the Mousekeepers the next day, and I hate leaving the room a mess when they are coming in, so I risked waking Bri to get it all taken care of.
Apparently we slept through the night, and other than giving Briana a bottle a little later, we never ate dinner. I'm not sure how that happened!
Coming up next: Epcot and MK, with Bri bringing down the house meeting Tinkerbell dressed up as...Tinkerbell.
So glad things are going better and I just adore those pics of you and Bri! Great job conquering that anxiety and getting out there this morning heading to dhs on your own! I love solo touring, it's so freeing to just do what just you want to do!
So happy David is returning to work!!! . And yes, hopefully the nausea will decrease as he adjusts to the meds.
Looking forward to your next TR post!
Thanks! (And enjoy, it's up now, lol!)
Quote:
Originally Posted by xwewhisper
So glad things are going better and I just adore those pics of you and Bri! Great job conquering that anxiety and getting out there this morning heading to dhs on your own! I love solo touring, it's so freeing to just do what just you want to do!
I'm so relieved that he is headed back to work. And thank you! Those pics turned out great even with my rained on messy hair.
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Glad to hear David is doing well, and going back to work.
You go girl! Solo touring. It's a different experience but fun too. I really enjoyed my solo time on the last trip.
So the die hard fans of Imagination, I think are those who remember the original ride and are actually die hard fans of that. It's continued with this version bc it's hoped that the original version will be brought back. I think there is a higher possibility if it doesn't disappear completely. Yeah, count me in the die hard fan group. Though, like I said, "BRING BACK THE DREAMFINDER!!!" and the rainbow hallway too.
Congrats to both you and David on solo touring and returning to work. Looks to me like your Princess has found her Realm and Dad's shoulders as a magic coach ain't bad either
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Things will get better 
*Melissa
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Pixie Dust
Continue with your encouragement and support and look forward to the goals you set together. If I could hug you through the computer I would!!
Kristin
I'm hoping to be able to complete at least one update tonight! Wish me luck. 
. And yes, hopefully the nausea will decrease as he adjusts to the meds.
)
"Sparky"(My first trip.)
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