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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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What are some of the easy meals you cook when you have the dvc kitchen? We won't cook much (it is vacation!) but there will be a few meals we eat in the room. I am thinking spaghetti, sloppy joes, salad, tacos, and hot dogs with chili for the boys. What meals have you cooked?
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We usually make breakfast in the room - you could do breakfast for dinner. Eggs, pancakes, etc. That's about the most cooking I do, that and maybe pasta or mac and cheese for the kids!
I like french toast bread, We but loaf of french bread from the local grocery, easy to make, put in oven for 45 min, no problems, make a 13 X 9 pan and easy fix for the next morning. Also look into buying or looking up crock pot meals. Not sure if this would work in your touring plans. (but easy to make) Shredded chicken sandwiches. We bought the big pizzas from WalMart that are not frozen, kids liked them enough. This time we plan on using the grill at our Tree house villa! So I have do some research. But we are getting the dining plan this time, so not that many meals planned.
One time we did ribs in the oven. Baked them in the oven overnight. It smelled so go we ate them for breakfast. I also buy homel microwave bacon. Have a great trip.
Good idea with the precooked bacon! Then the room won't smell like grease! Take and bake pizzas also sound god and easy. Thanks for the ideas! Keep them coming!
We have to do a lot of "quick meals" around here because of our crazy schedulle...
If you like sausage, Bob evans sells sausage links that are pre-cooked, you just open the package and microwave them for about 50 seconds or so...we put them in pita bread along with tomatos, shredded cheese for the oldest and add scrambled eggs for everyone...a quick, inexpensive breakfast sandwich to go.
I also "slow cook" a roast overnight...250 degrees with 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1 tsp rosmary, 1 tsp thyme, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper and then cover with beef broth. In the morning I shred the meat, and then strain the juice ...makes for easy shredded "french dip" sandwiches. I can also turn the leftover into "beef n noodles" by mixing up a packet of brown gravy mix with some of the juice and adding it to noodles.
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The Fun, Old-Fashioned Family Vacation, 3.0 http://www.passporterboards.com/foru...ml#post4472933
Ch-Ch-Changes July 2015
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We find it very easy to do breakfasts in the villas. The pre-cooked bacon and susage idea that others have mentioned is a great example.
On our last trip, we stayed four nights at OKW. We were in building 48, near one of the quiet pools; each quiet pool at OKW has a grill area. We brought with us a seasoning rub for steaks, and grilled up some steaks for our first night. [They sell the briquettes at the store, along with matches.] The aroma from the sizzling steaks can only be called heavenly... As we were walking back to our villa, several people commented on how it smelled so good, it was driving them crazy. We also made twice baked potatoes in the oven, and a side of asparagus. For salad, we bought bags of the pre-mixed "veggie lovers" salad. For dessert, we had the pre-made chocolate chip cookie dough -- the kind you just slice and place on the cookie sheet and pop in the oven. It was quite the feast! And it actually was not all that difficult or time consuming. It was the perfect way to start a week of fun with our friends and family.
And... when we were grilling the steak, we took advantage of the hot coals and grilled a few chicken breasts, and used thse for chicken salad a couple of days later.
When we joined DVC, I never imagined that we would actually take advantage of the kitchen facilities, other than maybe some light breakfast cooking. However, after having had this wonderful experience, I think we will be cooking at least one family meal on every trip. Also... saving a bit of $$ is a great bonus.
Brad
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"Esprits et fantômes sur vos fièrs destriers, Escortez dans la nuit la belle fiancée." -- Madame Leota in Phantom Manor, DL Paris
I do quick breakfast sandwiches. I spray a regular-sized cereal bowl with nonstick spray and scramble an egg in the bowl.
I pop bread or English muffin in toaster and cook eggs in microwave for 45 seconds.
When eggs come out, I pop a slice of cheese on them and put everything on the English muffin.
We like these because they are quick and have more protein which holds us longer than cereal or oatmeal.
On our last couple of trips we have done either lunch or dinner in our villa each day. When we were in the planning stages I thought about cooking meals in the room and then started making a list of the ingredients I would need. I decided that I didn't want to have to pack spices, seasoning, etc., plus I really didn't want to have to cook on vacation. I also didn't want to have too many leftovers that would potentially get wasted. So instead we bought a 5 day cooler and I cooked some of our favorites before we left home (red beans and rice, pasta with meat sauce, jambalaya, etc.) and froze enough for each meal in plastic containers. We also brought frozen chicken nuggets, lettuce, shredded cheese, bacon bits, flour tortillas, and honey mustard dressing to make wraps. We have about a 12 hour drive and everything held up fine in the cooler. One thing I did learn after the first trip was to freeze the meals in flatter containers so they would heat up quicker in the microwave. We saved a lot of time and money by doing this.
I cooked seven family meals last trip and plan at least five on the next. I agree that you need to plan in advance so you don't waste a ton of money on spices, etc. You definitely need to make a shopping list, too.
Here are some of our easy favorites:
Breakfast foods (even for dinner): eggs, bacon, pancakes
spaghetti & meatballs
slow-cooked roast overnight
nachos
sloppy joes
cheeseburgers (w/bacon leftover from breakfast)
Frittata (to use up all the eggs)
We also buy fish sticks, chicken tenders, fries, mac n cheese, Super Pretzels, PB&J.
Great idea about freezing precooked meals! That way there is less mess and actual cooking time! And I like the idea of using the same ingredient in multiple meals- eggs, bacon, etc.
I could make and freeze the sloppy joe, taco meat, even shredded chicken.
We've made lasagna, steak, burgers and spaghetti. Also breakfast. I've brought our griddle and I've heard of people bringing a crockpot. DH isn't a sandwich or salad guy ans we still do ok!
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We also made twice baked potatoes in the oven, and a side of asparagus. For salad, we bought bags of the pre-mixed "veggie lovers" salad. For dessert, we had the pre-made chocolate chip cookie dough -- the kind you just slice and place on the cookie sheet and pop in the oven. It was quite the feast! And it actually was not all that difficult or time consuming. It was the perfect way to start a week of fun with our friends and family.
Also... saving a bit of $$ is a great bonus. 
Can use this for at home too, lol!
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