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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
My DH and I are going in less than three weeks to Epcot for a long weekend (Thu-Sun) to the Food and Wine Festival. September is an INSANE month for us (as it is for most of us with kids starting school). I run a music teaching studio which opened this week for the new school year. I am overwhelmed with paperwork; phone calls; etc., and on top of that both kids are taking a challenging course load with lots of extra-curricular activities this year. Every year at this time the anxiety is overwhelming and planning this trip has helped me wade through it with something to look forward to. Until today I have not felt a twinge of guilt, but I just checked my DS's grades on the school website and I see he is struggling in a few of his classes already. He is a straight A student and was moved into Gifted and Talented classes this year, which is obviously going to be an adjustment. The homework load has tripled this year. I'm wondering if I should cancel my trip..... : - ( Any mommies out there with thoughts on this? What would you do?
But I would talk to him, and his teachers and find out what the root issue is.
How old/grade?
We struggled with this issue last year with my DS(13), not with doing the work, but turning it in! That was 7th grade and a BIG adjustment with having multiple teachers and be-bopping from class to class. Found out a big portion of it was peer pressure (being studious just isnt "COOL" these days ).
Along with that he was also in cross country and some other clubs. Well, those were the first to go as a consequence, and as more priviledges were lost, I noticed a change. It took losing all extra curricular activities, his stereo, TV, gaming systems, ability to watch TV, and recreational reading (hes a HUGE reader and rips through a large book in a couple days).
Well having no personal freedom, extra chores, us reviewing every shred of homework, and communicating with his teachers got his attention. It took less than a week of tight scrutiny for him to change his ways, and as a result he improved. The kicker was the consequence of no birthday celebration last year when he entered the realm of a teenager.
I wasnt spoken to for two weeks, but Im okay with that because it was an attention getter and was the proverbial 2x4 betwen the eyes to let him know how serious I was.
Perhaps another thing in your case that could be done is scale back the activities he has until he can get his homework load under control and make it manageable.
Funny enough he is in seventh grade! However middle school started for him last year, so he is used to the multiple classes and teachers. I checked the site again and one of the classes shows a missing assignment (hmmmm...this is a first), and he completely forgot to report to a sectional in Band (at 7 a.m. which I was not told about) for which he got a 0. So I think you're right. It is a question of responsibility. He just got a wii system, so I think that will be the first to go until he can find a way to remember. As far as not caring about his grades, in this case this is a kid who does. The social life is picking up, however and he has other things on his mind. My DD is a junior in HS so I know she can help him with homework on the two nights we're gone...just that she has so much of her own and she gets home so late because of marching band practice. My parents are keeping them and I think except for the Algebra they can help him. Still thinking about this, but you're right. I should not penalize my DH and myself. Thanks!
Keith hit it pretty well on the head. But I don't believe you should take away your trip because of everything that's going on. I'm not sure not going will really change your DS's situation, Debbie.
I would sit down with DS and see what his take is on why he's struggling. And then ask him what you can do to help him be more successful. Let him think about it, if he needs to, for an hour, then sit down again and work out details, whether it be cutting back on extra-curricular things, or just sitting down with him while he does his homework and might have questions he doesn't feel like he should have to be asking but needs to. (I do that with DD, I sit and do work at the table while she's doing HW, and that way if I see she appears stuck, I can subtlely help without appearing to be a hovering mom.)
No sweat. I see it a lot, as I am a youth bowling coach as well.
I see this fairly frequently with the kids in the 12-14 range. They are dealing with so much that it becomes overwhelming and once they hit overload, they typically dont realize it.
Thats where we (support system) comes in. Best thing you could do is to email all of his teachers, couselors, coaches, directors, etc and express your concerns for his progress. Typically, you can all work towards the common goal of making him a better student, musician, person, etc. Since you cant see him at every moment of the day, it is vital that they become your eyes and ears at school just like you are theirs at home.
I think of it as a partnership and even today, I have weekly status emails with his teachers and it seems to help.
That is one of the biggest issues with teens today, too many kids dont get that kind of support and are left to their own devices. That is when they all get together and become mutinous and determine that school just isnt cool and peer pressure gets laid on fairly thick; which turns the good kids onto the wrong path.
You sound like you have things well in hand and under control. I am confident you'll do well, and he will turn things around, especially losing the Wii. My son hated me for it at the time, but thanked me later and admitted it was a distraction.
I was in marching band as well, so I know how that goes. Marched drum corps for two seasons as well (BEST thing I could have ever done! Learned valuable lessons). Good luck to your DS & D.
Enjoy your trip and have a good time, the kiddos are in good hands with the folks and the reality is that it's only 4 days. Not like it's the end of the world.
Tell your son you saw his grades. Ask him if he needs help. Urge him to stay after school and make up work. He wouldn't be in GT unless they felt he could handle the work.
And if he doesn't start improving, take away the wii until he does! We went through something similar in our house: we had to restrict and eventually eliminate Internet use from our house, as DD could not resist it and was not getting school work completed.
My daughter also is in 7th this year we went from a small private school (we were there 9 yrs 3yo 2 6th grade) and now we are still at private but way way different 7th is a struggle for most kids feelings emotions work it can all be too much
dont cancel talk with him it is a new world in 7th
have fun
__________________
[IMG]<a href="http://s483.photobucket.com/albums/rr199/freegott1/?action=view¤t=101_0771_0072_072.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i483.photobucket.com/albums/rr199/freegott1/101_0771_0072_072.jpg" border="0" alt="mommy and victoria"></a>[/IMG]
I don't think I would give up my trip. I think as long as you stay involved (and it sounds like you are) and your son is aware of your involvement and concern and want for him to do well, things will improve.
Thank you so much to everyone for your great advice and encouragement. I did e-mail the teachers today, some whom I already know because my DD was at this school first. Heard back from every one of them and they are all going to work with me to help DS have a successful year. I heard many positive comments about my son (which made me feel GREAT!) and we are calling a family meeting tomorrow.
Keith, I am especially glad to see that there are fathers who have a clue about what is going on with their kids in their daily lives. My DH is a wonderful support with their band and sports activities, but the academics have always been completely up to me.(okay, except for Pre-Calc!) I think I will send DH to the orientation meetings this year!
So....we're off to Epcot in 20 days! Yea!!!! I feel better now. Thanks again!
I typically know what he is going to do before he does (since I already did it), and it is important to me that he puts forth the effort and makes school into college easier than I did.
I do hear you though, and understand your point, and thank you.
I went through this with BOTH boys in the 7th Grade. Even though both of them started middle school in 6th grade. My oldest has always struggled with grades. Until 7th grade it was actually an honest struggle. 7th grade it was not turning in assignments. He now is a pretty good student as a senior. My youngest has always had straight A's. Until 7th grade and he ceased to turn in assignments. He is now back to A's and B's.
__________________
_____________________________________________
Magic Kingdom Dec. '07
--Jody
_____________________________________________
Previous Trips: PC 05/04; DS/D 09/05; POR 12/07
_____________________________________________
About This Page: 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
). 
[IMG]<a href="http://s483.photobucket.com/albums/rr199/freegott1/?action=view¤t=101_0771_0072_072.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i483.photobucket.com/albums/rr199/freegott1/101_0771_0072_072.jpg" border="0" alt="mommy and victoria"></a>[/IMG]
Linear Mode
