The Planning Lull

A Walt Disney World vacation requires a least some planning. I even dedicated an entire blog post to how much goes into the planning, but there comes that point where it seems like there’s nothing to do. There’s a big gap between dining day (180 days prior to check-in) and FastPass day (60 days prior to on-site check-in). I’m in that gap now.

The days have been a little frustrating because I’m ready to go back to Disney now. I’m ready to eat at some of the restaurants we’re planning to try. I’m ready to see the Castle!

Just the other day, Peanut look at me and said: “We’re leaving for Disney tomorrow!” He knows we’re not because he has a much better concept of days and time than Diva does, but like me, he’s excited to go. So besides re-thinking my plans a few dozen times here are some of the ways we’re passing the time. Peanut’s been practicing his reading skills by checking out the park maps so he can give his input on our plans.

Who says Disney isn’t educational? There are some pretty interesting words on the maps. From words like “Sorcerers” to “Cheshire” on the Magic Kingdom map to the challenges presented with Spanish, German, Italian, and French on the Epcot map he is working to sound out words that aren’t part of his regular vocabulary and continue building reading fluency. He was happy to read to Diva to prepare her for her first ride on Splash Mountain and he checked out what’s in store for his trip around Space Mountain.

I’ve also started crafting. Well, I guess it would be considered a revision of a prior craft. Before our trip in 2017, I had made a Mickey Mouse shaped countdown from floral wreaths. I take no credit– I saw the idea on Pinterest.

It made it to zero, but then Mickey took a fall and his ear broke. Diva has been rather upset about this since it happened. She regularly reminds me to fix his ear. She also continually asks how much longer until her birthday trip. So I finally made it a point to pick up a new “ear” at Joann on one of my trips and then had a weekend with nothing planned other than a Saturday morning baseball game. I pulled out the glue gun and yarn and got to work. The ear looked good, but my numbers, made from construction paper were a bit worn. One more trip to the craft store from some card stock and a few minutes with my Cricut and I had new Mickey-shaped counters and Disney-font (Waltograph) numbers.

The other crafting I’ve been doing is working on shirts for our fall trip. You’ll have to keep following along to see them during the trip, but I did make one that I love wearing now. I’ve seen the concept of the castle formed with a mosaic of characters on Etsy and Pinterest but I didn’t love the exact design that was available for purchase. So I sat down at my computer for several hours over the course of a few days and I designed my own. It’s not perfect, but it’s perfect enough for me especially since it was my first time attempting a project of this scale and design.

The kids think this one is fun because each time they look at it they see a different character. Unlike the options on Etsy, this one has our characters from so many of our favorite movies! We were sure to include more current characters like Joy, Moana, and Nick & Judy from Zootopia with all of the classics like Jiminy Cricket, Snow White, Cinderella, and of course, Mickey Mouse. I opted to leave out the fillers of stars, Mouse heads, or other little images, mainly because I was exhausted from the project. How’s that for honesty?

Besides crafting I stay up-to-date on changes at Disney so I’m not surprised when I try to book something and it’s gone or I find out something is temporarily closed for refurbishment. Check out the links on the left (or below if you’re on mobile) and the Disney Parks Blog get the latest news. I’ve found Twitter is always bursting with news just after it breaks. You’ll find me there in 9 days following all the news about Toy Story Land’s opening!

While reading some of the news, Grumpy and I recently talked about the Pixar Play Zone that opened in spring at the Contemporary Resort. It’s basically a babysitting service that allows parents the night out. It includes activities centered around Pixar movies and dinner with desserts. Grumpy didn’t bok at the price after we read all it included. We’re still undecided if we’ll opt to use it or not. Time will tell.

So, the countdown now reads 121. It’s still 61 days before we can book our FastPass reservations. I’m waiting for Peanut’s feedback on the maps and soon we’ll start making some plans based on everyone’s input to make decisions for our FastPasses. We’ll probably watch some ride and experience videos on YouTube for anything the kids haven’t had a chance to try yet. We’ve found that really helps them with their decisions, expels fears, and builds excitement.

I’m definitely not wishing the summer away, just watching as the trip inches closer.