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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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.
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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
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Moving on with the current of the years.
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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.
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So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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June/July or Sept/Oct - Really need some advice :)
We have already booked and paid deposits for 09/21/10 to 10/12/10 (1 week AKL, 2 weeks BC)
We have already got our plane tickets from Australia to NY and back but not from NY to Orlando return (which we can change) and we have not got our NY accommodation yet. In Sept/Oct we are meeting up with friends for a week who have been on a cruise and I am celebrating my 40th that is at the beginning of November, so am planning on a cake and Grand 1 Yacht for my little 40th party. The thing is my son's school holidays are only two weeks long. So I will be taking him out of school for 4 days BEFORE school breaks up. Then when they go back, its the Tuesday 5th October and he won't go back to school until Friday 15th October, so 10 days later (but almost two school weeks), thats 10 school days late. So he will miss a total of 12 school days by going in Sept/Oct. Now the school frowns upon taking kids out of school outside of school holidays for holidays but many people do, but Im not sure for that long, but am feeling a little guilty. He is in Year 5 now so they miss a lot more work than in the younger grades.
In June/July they get 4 weeks holiday almost (June/July is mid school year for us in Australia. Our school year runs from end of January to beginning of December with Dec/Jan being our big summer holiday) So if we went in June/July he would only miss about 4 school days mid year.
Now comes the poll.
should we keep 3 weeks 9/21/10 to 10/12/10 where we take my son out of school for 12 school days, meet up with our friends and celebrate my 40th close to the birthday and maybe have lower crowd levels and Hallloween party
or
change to 3 weeks 06/22/10 to 07/13/10 where my son won't miss so much school, but our friends won't be there and it's a long way from my birthday (4 months) and not having friends won't really have a birthday party.
Are the crowds just crazy in June/July????, and the weather, how is that? We live in the tropics so an average day for us is 86.
Would love to hear opinions on the best time to go, I really don't know much about June/July what you would do, the crowds in June/July compared to Sept/Oct and from any parents about taking their child out of school for that long.
What would you all do? Really need advice
Last edited by aussiedisneyfan; 01-21-2010 at 09:19 AM..
I can definitely relate to the dilemma of taking kids out of school to go to WDW, and we have done this to a certain extent.
But I voted for June/July based on your post b/c, IMO, 2 school weeks is a lot to miss, particularly towards the beginning of the school year, when relationships are forming, and the particular teacher(s) is getting to know your child. If it weren't for this, I would definitely have voted for Sept. / Oct, which is, IMO, a better time to visit the World in terms of crowd levels and (sometimes) weather. But Disney is a great trip no matter what! (though I will never go during Easter again )
I, too, will be turning 40 this year! Happy Birthday! We are doing 3 nights at WDW, followed by a 4 night Disney Cruise for my birthday - it has been in the planning stages for a couple of years! My kids will miss some school, but it is at the end of the school year, after the NJ ASK (standardized testing for NJ students). My students are doing very well, and we have a good relationship with both their teachers.
That being said, it is, of course, a personal decision, which only you and your family can make. I can definitely relate to wanting to have a nice bday celebration for this milestone with friends and family, so it is a challenging situation.
Good luck with your decision! You will have an awesome birthday either way!
As long as your child can make up the work and you can dedicate some time to study at WDW, I would go in Aug. Sept. June/July is CRAZY busy and HOT! It is the middle of the school year for you guys, so I would make sure the teacher/principal is okay with it. Our school does an "educational experience" absence for things like this. If our children have a qualifying trip, they are counted present at school for the duration of their absence. WDW is considered educational too, which makes it awesome!!!
Good Luck!
I, too, will be turning 40 this year! Happy Birthday! We are doing 3 nights at WDW, followed by a 4 night Disney Cruise for my birthday - it has been in the planning stages for a couple of years! My kids will miss some school, but it is at the end of the school year, after the NJ ASK (standardized testing for NJ students). My students are doing very well, and we have a good relationship with both their teachers.
Good luck with your decision! You will have an awesome birthday either way!
Happy Birthday to you too Sounds like a fantastic celebration that you have organised going on the cruise. How Exciting!
Thank you everybody for your replies. I have worked out it is actually 12 school days rather than 14 that he will be missing. Still a few though, but as our school year starts back next week, I am hoping that he won't have a sick day between now and Sept, so it won't seem so bad having that time off.
I am really torn, I only just started looking at it today and started to get a bit guilty about that many days off school, but then again, travelling internationally is all educational learning about different cultures and we will be going to museums in New York which are educational . We booked the plane tickets quickly last year and had our dates, but then the return date wasn't available, we had to decided straight away as it was a special that was going to expire, so we had a few days before or after to choose and chose the later date as we don't want to cut the WDW part of the trip short.
Last edited by aussiedisneyfan; 01-21-2010 at 09:34 AM..
Definitely June and July. Sept/Oct is nicer--- but 12 days of school is tough on a kid. We had that same dilemma-- we were debating taking my soon to be 4th grader out for 1 week, and decided we just can't do that anymore, so we're going in the summer. I'm sad our off season trips are over, but I just don't want our vacations to cause my son stress when he returns to school, and has to figure out what he missed. Luckily, he does very well academically, and his teachers were fine with it, we just decided it wasn't a good idea.
Wow, thank you all so much for replying and voting.
With the new school year starting back next week. I may speak to my son's new teacher and see what he thinks. He may be happy for him to miss some school and maybe he can give him some work that he will miss or maybe he can do a little assignment on his trip to present to the class or maybe do a daily journal during the trip to share with the class.
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Happy Birthday! We are doing 3 nights at WDW, followed by a 4 night Disney Cruise for my birthday - it has been in the planning stages for a couple of years! 
My kids will miss some school, but it is at the end of the school year, after the NJ ASK (standardized testing for NJ students). My students are doing very well, and we have a good relationship with both their teachers.
Deb
Sounds like a fantastic celebration that you have organised going on the cruise. How Exciting!
. We booked the plane tickets quickly last year and had our dates, but then the return date wasn't available, we had to decided straight away as it was a special that was going to expire, so we had a few days before or after to choose and chose the later date as we don't want to cut the WDW part of the trip short.
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