Mammas got a brand new bag!

A good bag for carrying miscellanea is a pretty essential thing for moms (and non-moms) while touring anywhere and everywhere. Now that my kiddies are older, I'm so thankful I don't have to include extra clothes, diapers, snacks, etc.

This is a Vera Bradley "Hipster." It has a really long strap to sling across my mom-body and a decent size compartment to carry all the nonsense we incur. Wallets, tickets, maps, a small package of WetWipes, anti-bac gel, cell phones, and a few little snacks or granola bars, just in case. I really love it.

It's small, so it limits me. Whenever I carry a back-pack (as in previous years) I'm just so inclined to fill it up with stuff I don't really need. I think as parents we always feel like we have to prepare for all the what-ifs. We get it in our mind that we're going on an 80 day expedition to the end of civilization... whereas, anything you could ever need or want will be within a few minutes drive or walk (when we vacation). So, trying to limit myself, and I got a new bag to do so! yay!

Mickey Mail...

Is always the best kind of mail to come home to! It makes a Friday afternoon all the more sweet :)

Resort indecision....and my all time most favorite daughter moment...

This is Gianna with Belle, on our trip in 2009. I had just learned to sew and made her Belle dress. What a wonderful moment, and a "must do" for any little princess... a visit to Akersush Royal Banquet Hall for dinner (or breakfast or lunch) where 4-5 princesses come to your table to greet you while you're eating! *Heavenly!*

We are booked @ Pop Century Resort for our trip in April.... we LOVE this resort. It is by far, the best "Value" resort in my opinion on Disney Property. I regularly suggest this resort to all of my "first timer" friends on a budget.

That said, I'm seriously considering "upgrading" our resort to a moderate level resort. It would probably be about $500-ish more to do so for our trip for 9 nights. It means a bigger room and bigger beds. It also usually means a bigger resort... which, normally would be a good thing. But when you're walking around parks all day long, all you really want after that long day is to get back to your room and not haul across the resort. So, it's a give and take... not sure what we'll do. hmm.... what a horrible "problem" to have, huh?

Time for some disney outfits....

I am certifiable, I'm sure. But I even plan out the outfits my kiddos will wear. Most specifically, my little princess. She LOOOVES to dress up, and I LOOOOVE designing & sewing, so it works out well for the both of us. I started planning some new outfits and princess dresses for this year, mostly because she has grown out of almost everything I made in the past 2 years... Just thought I'd reminisce a little bit (look how little they are! *sniffles*) and show y'all what I've made for previous Disney trips....

Reminiscing... (with 97 days to go)

These little mementos are from our first trip in 2009. Tobias' "Key to the World" card, which is his park tickets, meal tickets, room key and charge card (if we enable charging privileges... Obviously not for a 4 year old). And also his Disney luggage tags. I love that out of all the things he collected on that trip, he chose these two things as some of the most special. :)

Ready to go!!!!

Suitcase inventory... Check!

A test, and a dirty little secret...

I'm testing out posting from my iPhone. Of course, like any good test, I need to push the limits of my technical expertise and see if I can also post a picture.

So here's my dirty little secret. I am secretly obsessed with tiny, trial or travel-sized versions of ANY THING. I just can't help myself. It's seriously one of the most fun parts of planning vacation. I always envision a little village of garden gnomes using the miniaturized versions of our big people stuff. Today was our first "vacation shopping" trip to Wal-fart. Yay!

A morning spent planning...

I love Saturday mornings (who doesn't, really?). I get to sit at the kitchen table and plan away, and the kids play (moderately) well together.

So, without further ado...

<<<< THIS is The Infamous Spreadsheet. When people (mostly at work) see my planning spreadsheets I get the best comments in the world. I seriously wish I could take pictures of the looks on their faces when they find out THIS is for a... family vacation?! ...Well, why yes it is. I'm a project manager by trade, so I spreadsheet everything from huge executive level projects to my grocery shopping and pantry inventory. It's how my brain works.

My high level itinerary planning is done. Which park & activities on which day, and the restaurant reservations we really wanted were made about 90 days ago. That's because Disney has a "180-day advance" reservation window, and ALL of the really popular restaurants fill up on that date. I kid you not. So it's a little struggle planning which days you want to do what, so that you're in the right place for your dining reservations. Maybe it's my ADD, but I (and a whole vacationing community) thrive on having our steps laid out for us. It means we can get the most enjoyment out of our vacation, and the most bang for our buck.

Next is the day-to-day "Touring Plans" for each park. I'm pretty stoked about this part because it's the nitty-gritty details of looking at trends and statistics to see what is the best time of the day to do X attraction. This is why I think I love my job so much. I really enjoy optimizing project plans for the scientific groups I assist and oversee. And now the fact that it's on a subject I LOVE (Disney), well it's just all the better. For anyone planning a disney vacation, I HIGHLY suggest: www.TouringPlans.com. Even a semi-veteran like me, who knows the trends and crowd statistics - it's an amazingly helpful site just to maintain the organization of your Touring Plan. There is also an amazing chat community on there, with incredibly helpful, colorful people. :) This group that I have come to love, calls themsels the "Liners" and it's great to have friends that share your OCDD (Obsessive Compulsive Disney Behavior) . And with that, I leave my "Liner" friends with the following....

PS... you WILL see lots of inside jokes. If you're not a Liner, please don't let this put you off. Just ask. I promise you, there is a hilarious back story. Well, hilarious if you are moderately exhausted and/or drunk.

(One Long Vacation, How-We-Vacation, and their subsidiaries take no liability or responsibility if you do not find said jokes humorous. )

And the countdown is Officially On! ...99 days to go

While I personally have been counting down since about 3 months ago, it's never made "in stone" until we start our double-digit countdown calendar. This time, we went for a paper chain. 99 Days to go!!!

ps...pardon the scruffy looking kids. One has been up since about 6am trying on every dress in her closet, the other prefers to stay in Jammies all day. What do I care?! 99 days to go!!!