Bubby and KittyKat Go to the Mouse House!! August 15th to the 22nd,2008 - 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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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!
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.
Bubby and KittyKat Go to the Mouse House!! August 15th to the 22nd,2008
Bubby and KittyKat’s First Time to the Mouse House!
A pre-Trip Report
I have been letting my DH who has never been to Disney before that we were going to go and take our two DKids. He always growls about it. Don’t misunderstand, he loves vacation, and we enjoyed Myrtle Beach immensely year before last. But he doesn’t get the Disney thing. Especially because he thinks it is so much more money. Sooo. . .
This Trip started out as a trip to China for the 2008 summer Olympic Games. Five years ago when our niece got a full ride in volleyball to Stanford University, and then won the “Miss Volleyball” for the state of Ohio, and was asked to play on the national team, we all decided we better start saving our money for a trip to China, where we felt would be her pinnacle. She was invited to Colorado Springs on their dime to try out for the national team. She made the team, and we all started checking prices on airfare and hotels. This was in February. After following her national team career for a month, news came that she would not be going with the training team to China for their initial tour. They were taking about half of the national team. I am not sure how it all works, but she was in grad school, and felt let down, so she quit the team. After a couple days of shock, I called DH at work and said. O.K. find out if this is for sure. You see from the beginning, I had said that IF she did not go to China, we were going to Disney!! Once it was confirmed that she would not go to China, I got on the phone with my TA.
Fast forward to April 7th. I have received all of my info in the mail from my TA and since I have been planning this trip in my head for several years, it took little time to figure out the major details. I called my DH and informed him that I would be making the ressies and he needed to let me know when he could NOT go. He is director of curriculum development for welding school and has movie shoots that he has to run, they are scheduled pretty far in advance, so we can’t conflict those. DH asked me for the 5th or 6th time since we had children, “Honey, do we really HAVE to do Disney World?”
“I mean WHY is it necessary?” Please understand that DH has never been to visit Mickey, and does not understand why it is different from your run of the mill amusement park. “Yes, honey, it is a MUST do for our children. You will understand after you get there.” He is a ball of fun at amusement parks and always has a blast on vacation, but he has no Idea about Disney. He had 5 siblings, and they were so spread out and never went on a real big family vacation.
So I called my AAA TA, and told her we would like to go to Disney, fly down, stay at Wilderness Lodge, have park hopper passes, with the DDP, then we would like to get a rental car and go over to Disney’s Vero Beach resort. I gave her our ten days in July, and our 12 day window in August to work with. She hung up and apparently went right to work. She called back about an hour later with several people on hold, she gave me the dates that were available, July 5-11th, Or August 15th through 21st. I just needed to say which I wanted. But the catch was in July we had to go to the beach first. Ok, that settled it, I know we have to go to the beach AFTER Disney. My family lives for the ocean and DH is never so relaxed as in a lounge chair on the beach, so no question August it is. Booked it! Paid for it! Done! Or so I thought. . .
Bubby and Kittykat's First Trip to the Mouse house August 15th -22nd 2008 pt 2
Well, I was feeling great about finally booking a Disney vacation. The first one I get to plan on my own too. So I called DH and told him the great news. DH said “Well, gee why are we coming home on Thursday? I don’t want to go to work for one day when we get home. How come you didn’t book through Friday? I would love one more day on the beach. Oh well, that’s ok.” Well now, I am not one to pass that up. . . so I called my wonderful TA Susan back, and explained it. It cost 50 dollars to change the airline ressie, but no problem, one more day at the beach. I called DH back and told him the wonderful news. He said “ You did what?” “Um honey, I just made your dream of another day on the beach come true!” I said. TA DA!!! “A year of a million Dreams! Get it!!” He laughed and said I was such a cheeseball.
So I headed to my favorite bookstore to look for a great guidebook. I have been to Disney world four times in my life: 1974 one day in MK, 1976 Poly for 4 days, 1978 one day in MK. and 1989 offsite Mk and Epcot. I know that there are so many new things, including two new theme parks and many new attractions. So I piled up my arms with literally every book about Disney. I cleared nearly one whole shelf, and took them to a table, got a cappacino, and started pouring over them. I started with the Unoficial Guide first since it was highly recommended by a friend. It was good, but didn’t catch my eye. Right away a bright blue one in the middle of the stack had my attention. But I waited till I got to it. Most were all alike, and you had to read lots of paragraphs of info you didn’t really need to get to the info you really wanted. I like facts and lots of them, and charts, and maps and indexes. So I finally worked my way down to the bright blue one. “PASSPORTER’S WALT DISNEY WORLD” Wow, this looked interesting, love the blue and yellow cover, and cool, its spiral bound, and wow what are these yellow pocket thingys? Hey, this is too cool. I am a scrapbooker with 11 years of scrapbooks under my belt, so right away, those pockets and all the places to write things and keep stubs etc. Well, you all know the rest. I was in LOVE!! Boy am I glad I bought my Passporter that day, it was the last one at my store, and as I found out when I came home and looked at the website, you all were sold out of the 2008 books! Whew! So I discovered Passporter.com on April 18th and the planning really began.
I soon learned about a thing called an ADR, and that at only 128 days out I was late for making them! But from then on all of my details started falling into place, with the help of all of you veterans, and my beloved passporter. I have used the numbers on the back cover a hundred times. I did get most of the ADR’s I wanted and got some good touring advice from all of you. It all started looking really great. So I told my Mom on April 19th, while we were staying out of town for my DD’s volleyball tourney. She asked if she and Dad could come down to WDW for a couple days while we were there. She wanted to see their two Grandkids in the magic. Sure! So we get home from the tournament on Sunday, and then Monday morning Mom calls to say. . .
Bubby and Kittykats trip to the Mouse House August 15-22, 2008 pt. 3
Mom talked to Susan the TA and they booked Wilderness lodge also! Woo Hoo! Then she says AND we are on the same flight going down! And we are staying for 4 days rather than two! COOL! My parents are very young for Grandparents only 61 and 63, and act much younger than their age. They love amusement parks and especially Disney.
So here is the “Cast List” for the Bubby and Kittykat trip to the mouse house 8-15-08
Me,Rainbowy, 40, mom to Bubby and Kittykat, 5th time to WDW DH, 50, father of Bubby and Kittykat, first time to WDW! DS, 11, 5ft tall, still secretly loves Pooh and Toy Story! First trip to WDW DD, 9, only 3” shorter than DS, Big Hannah Montana fan, First Trip! DM, 61, my mother, retired school teacher, always up to something, 5th trip DD, 63, my father, the quintessential adoring Grandfather, 5th trip
Our trip will officially begin when we all pack into one vehicle at 5:30 am on August 15th for our trip to the airport. We should arrive in Orlando at 10:30 am. We have booked DME to take us to the resort. We have two rooms booked at Wilderness Lodge we have requested ours for courtyard view, and theirs across the hall, woods view. August 15th-19th. We all have 5 day park hopper passes, as well as DDP.
Our ADR’s and tentative Itinerary look like this:
Friday 8/15, 6:25 Tony’s (EMH in MK till 2am!)
Saturday 8/16, 8:35 Tusker House, AK all morning and afternoon then 5:00 H&V in DHS for the Fantasmic package.
Sunday 8/17, Sleep in, family church, pool, CS for Br. &L, then M&D are taking kids to MK for the evening and a 4:55 Crystal Palace party with Pooh, Hubby and I are relaxing some more, and then dressing for dinner 8pm at Narcoosees and hopefully seeing wishes from there or on Monorail back to MK. Then 10:45 Passporter meet for Dole whip!
Monday 8/18, Epcot all day, CS for meals. DHS EMH in evening maybe.
Tuesday 8/19, 8:30 am Whispering Canyon Café, Goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa, Mk to do favorite things again or see what was missed then say goodbye. Evening drive down the coast to Disney’s Vero Beach.
Wednesday8/20, 9:50am Breakfast with Goofy! (Yes they have a character meal at Vero!) Lunch on the beach, Dinner at Ocean Grill.
Thursday 8/21, Breakfast in room, lunch on beach, Dinner at Squid Lips
Friday 8/22, Breakfast at resort, snacks on the beach, Dinner at the airport. We leave for home at 10pm. My Mom and Dad will pick us up at the airport.
Saturday 8/23-?? I plan on reliving and scrapping this trip for the next year or more!!
I hope this is a good pre trip report so far. I will let you know if anything important happens between now and then. It has been so much fun planning this trip with all of you and my Passporter! Thanks for all of your advice and suggestions, and especially thanks to Dave and Jennifer!!
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Awesome start! My parents, and my mother-in-law, have joined us for trips and had such a great time. It is a special treat for them to see Disney through their eyes. Your parents will have a blast and you will create some wonderful family memories! Looking forward to hearing more...
Rainbowy, your plans look great!! How sad that your neice didn't get to realize her Olympic dream, but what a great way of spending your vacation fund!!
Well, I can't beleive its only 22 days away! There is so much to do before vacation. My DD is working on her county fair project as I type, and I need to go help her in a minute. We have church camp coming up in a week 8/3-8/8, and then Fair 8/8-8/14, and we have to be at the Fair on the 14th at 6 for finals, and then removing projects will probably take till 9pm. We have to leave for the airport at 5 am the next morning! AHHHHHH! It seems like it will be such a rush. So I have decided to pack a lot of our things early. IN doing so I found that our current beach towels are 1) A little worn & 2) Very fluffy and huge. So I decided we would need at least two new ones that were smaller and less plush to pack with us. So at walmart what do we find?
Disney Beach Towels, just the right size and thickness $5 !
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Ok, so I have 21 days right! Plenty of time to get those last few things, get clothes organized and pack, right. Oh My Word, NO! In the next 21 days, I will spend 6 of them working at church camp 8/3-8/8 coming home for one night to take our fair entries in for check in on thursday. Then after we come home from camp on Friday we have County Fair duties and shows all week! 8/8-8/14 AGHHHH! We leave for the airport at 5am on the 15th. I am just realizing there is precious little time to get it all together. So. that suitcase in the dining room will start getting more attention.
I also got our beach towels for the kids at wal-mart yesterday. On sale for only $5 DD got Hannah Montanna, and DS got Nemo! They were thrilled to get Disney Towels for Disney Vacation! And the towels aren't too thick, but they are really soft. I have to wash those and get them in the suitcase today. Also replaced diving masks that were worn out! Its a good thing Kiddies are going camping with my parents this weekend. Hubby will also be gone for his yearly 150 mile ride for alzheimers. So I will be on my own Saturday and Sunday!! Yeah.
Thank Goodness, I will get everybodys suitcases out this weekend and pack whatever I can.
I will try to load a photo of DS and DD.
About This Page: 
Bubby and KittyKat Go to the Mouse House!! August 15th to the 22nd,2008
. They were taking about half of the national team. I am not sure how it all works, but she was in grad school, and felt let down, so she quit the team. After a couple days of shock,
I called DH at work and said. O.K. find out if this is for sure. You see from the beginning, I had said that IF she did not go to China,
we were going to Disney!! Once it was confirmed that she would not go to China, I got on the phone with my TA. 
I called my DH and informed him that I would be making the ressies and he needed to let me know when he could NOT go. He is director of curriculum development for welding school and has movie shoots that he has to run, they are scheduled pretty far in advance, so we can’t conflict those. DH asked me for the 5th or 6th time since we had children, “Honey, do we really HAVE to do Disney World?”
Or so I thought. . . 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
The first one I get to plan on my own too. So I called DH and told him the great news. DH said “Well, gee why are we coming home on Thursday?
How come you didn’t book through Friday? I would love one more day on the beach.
Oh well, that’s ok.” Well now, I am not one to pass that up.
. . so I called my wonderful TA Susan back, and explained it. It cost 50 dollars to change the airline ressie, but no problem, one more day at the beach. I called DH back and told him the wonderful news. He said “ You did what?” “Um honey, I just made your dream of another day on the beach come true!” I said. TA DA!!! 
“A year of a million Dreams! Get it!!” He laughed and said I was such a cheeseball. 
Hey, this is too cool. I am a scrapbooker with 11 years of scrapbooks under my belt, so right away, those pockets and all the places to write things and keep stubs etc. Well, you all know the rest. I was in LOVE!! Boy am I glad I bought my Passporter that day, it was the last one at my store, and as I found out when I came home and looked at the website, you all were sold out of the 2008 books! 
Sure!
More please 
First trip to WDW
at 5:30 am on August 15th for our trip to the airport. We should arrive in Orlando at 10:30 am.
Sleep in, family church, pool, CS for Br. &L, then M&D are taking kids to MK for the evening and a 4:55 Crystal Palace party with Pooh, Hubby and I are relaxing some more, and then dressing for dinner 8pm at Narcoosees
and hopefully seeing wishes from there or on Monorail back to MK. Then 10:45 Passporter meet for Dole whip!
Evening drive down the coast to Disney’s Vero Beach.
the kids and I in Cayo Coco, Cuba. March 2011
Aimee
How sad that your neice didn't get to realize her Olympic dream, but what a great way of spending your vacation fund!! 
In the next 21 days, I will spend 6 of them working at church camp 8/3-8/8 coming home for one night to take our fair entries in for check in on thursday. Then after we come home from camp on Friday we have County Fair duties and shows all week! 8/8-8/14 AGHHHH!
Yeah. 
Linear Mode
