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20 Apr 14, 04:25 PM |
#1
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I am not a shopaholic
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Chronicles of November : the Mouse, the Minister & Wardrobe. Updated post 510
Meet the cast and Talking Turkey - in this post
The Background The original plan : a budget shopping trip Meet the cast, planning hiccups and a dollop of drama over the next two posts A bit more drama and practical planning stuff eek , its official , wedding plans and wedding dresses Another wedding dress the wedding dress winner water , water , everywhere The plan for Days 1-3 , inc fab food and MVMCP Day 4 - on Plan A ! I'm all ears Proms, Porsches, Plants, Pooches - oh, and some parks... More dresses The latest plan - starts here posts 249 and 250 Plans pick up pace post 366 and disaster strikes at post 372 Sparkles ! Post 396 a bit of an update getting cracking with the packing latest update post 510 What's this I hear you say? An Orlando pre trip - surely not? Ssssshhhhhh, come closer, I have a secret to share with you. No one else knows about our secret trip, just you and several thousand Dibbers ... Ahem, our last two trip reports have ended along the lines of “ wow, great holiday but not going back next year” As you can see from the countdown, we are into Double Digits for our FIRST holiday, two weeks in Turkey at the end of July. Hmmmm, could that mean we need a countdown for a SECOND holiday this year? On returning from Orlando last year, both boys declared they would like a break from Florida to wait for some new rides to be finished and Andy said we could holiday anywhere in the world that we liked as long as it wasn’t Orlando and it was in Turkey Cant say I was that keen on Turkey – we have been twice before, yes we love it, hot, cheap and plenty to do or not do depending on your mood. But its just not America Undeterred Andy took control of booking and we are indeed going back to the place we last stayed in 2010 ( the holiday to make up for our mildly disastrous first ever holiday of a lifetime in WDW at Easter 2010) We are off to Ovacik near Hisaronu for 2 weeks. I am sure it will be good fun Here’s a few pics from last time We stayed in the top floor here – A two storey apartment with two bedrooms ( one double and one with two singles) and a bathroom upstairs, master bedroom, lounge, kitchen and shower room on the lower floor. Its managed by an English lady who lives in the apartment next door, she is lovely and had a fridge full of cold drinks waiting for us on arrival Nice pool that Andy hopes to make use of ….. We are hoping Connor wont make a repeat of the last trip when he almost sliced his finger off with a broken glass We will visit the Market in Fethiye and Hisaronu Look how small the boys are ! Not sure if we will go back to the Waterpark, think the boys may be too big now We will take a boat trip or two , hopefully from Fethiye where the boats leave from the Harbour and not Olu Deniz where you board from the sand and when you are dodgy on your feet like me, it can only mean one thing – yep, falling off the gang plank with all the swaying The boys love snorkelling and scaring me by jumping off the side of the boat And their favourite is the jeep safari , with the trip to the fish farm The rafting at Kalkan And of course the mud baths ……. The ice cold water that you wash it off with in the river is sooooooooooo cold – mind you, it does leave your skin super smooth . It remains to be seen if I can be persuaded to do this again ! So, that’s what we are expecting to do in around 98 days time. It will be fun, there will be teenage strops and no doubt toilet terrors as Turkish plumbing is really pants , that’s of course where it exists ……
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2022 Dom Republic /2019 New Orleans, Jekyll, Hilton Head, Charleston, Savannah, Palm Coast, Clearwater/2019 DLP /2018 Dubai /Miami,New Orleans, Orlando, Largo/2017 Dallas,New Orleans,Little Rock,Eureka Springs,Memphis,Nashville,Orlando/Mar 2017 Orlando, Clearwater, Largo /2016 NYC,Washington, Orlando /2015 Windsor Palms / 2014 Our Wedding Trip - Portofino Bay & Yacht Club / 2013 FantasyWorld Resort/ 2012 East & West Coast. Double Disney. Edited at 09:16 PM. |
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20 Apr 14, 04:25 PM |
#2
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Thread Starter
I am not a shopaholic
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But this is all a trifling diversion I hear you say, how does this have anything to do with a return trip to Orlando ?
Nothing at all but its nice to have this holiday coming up soon. Back to the Sunshine State We had a great time last year. We had no intentions of returning. To placate my need for an American holiday, after he had booked Turkey, Andy agreed we could look at doing a road trip for 2015 – so I started looking at a Tennessee based trip and have made some progress with the planning. We are waiting for flights to be released but we have found a cabin in the Smoky Mountains, got lots of ideas and will be starting to really get into the planning when we get back from Turkey so be on the look out for a Cajun Capers and Mountain Mayhem trippy starting sometime later this year ( much later I think ! ) All was good with the world, Turkey 2014 and America 2015. Sorted Christmas came and went And we looked at ourselves in the photos and wondered when we had got so cuddly ……….. And then life threw in some of those curve balls – My Dad was taken seriously ill with seizures and a stroke and we had that awful “ you need to come home now” phone call one day in February as he had been rushed to intensive care. Thanks to the truly amazing A&E staff at the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend, he has made a remarkable recovery and lives to fight another day. Not entirely the same man he was, but still with us for which we are very thankful. Several weeks later, one of my closest colleagues , someone who had been my right hand man for many years, died suddenly from a heart attack – only 50. I was rocked and am still totally saddened by his death. It stuns you. And then one of the funniest, kindest and bravest ladies that I know, also a work colleague was cruelly taken away by cancer. A light went out somewhere when she left us – it was her funeral just recently and it was one of the saddest and most humbling days I can recall. You realise how precious and short life really is. What does this have to do with anything ? Remember how we looked at ourselves and didn’t like what we saw, well we started a diet – My Fitness Pal based for calorie counting and we both gave up drinking. Fast Forward to the end of March and Andy has lost 3 stone and I have lost 1 stone and we are still going. This is fantastic But none of Andy’s clothes fit him – he looks ridiculous with everything hanging off him. In a rush of blood to the head, he announced that he needed a new wardrobe and that given his current wardrobe is almost entirely from Lacoste outlets in Orlando, wouldn’t a quick trip ( for a week) during term time be cheap enough to go shopping? Frankly , with the sadness that we had gone through in the last couple of months, we looked at each other and agreed, what the heck, you really do only live once – why not !? And so – The Wardrobe came to be in the title. Needing no encouragement and faster than you can say “shopping trip to Premium Outlets”, I was on Expedia searching out a bargain. And there were certainly some to be had going around mid November . And then the guilt began Could we really go away without the kids to Orlando? Andy doesn’t do guilt – he was quite firm that as we have just paid a small fortune for both Connor and Jamie to go on school ski-ing holidays next year ( and Jamie has only just come back from a school trip to Barcelona) , he felt that they had no cause to quibble. And he reminded me that they had said they didn’t want to go back. Which is true – but when told about our trip, I think they may have selective amnesia on both the above counts. We do know they don’t like shopping and as that’s the prime purpose of this trip, that may be enough to put them off. We shall see. Because it’s a secret and they don’t know yet We have told people at work (I find its handy to do this to get the time off) and Andy’s Mum as she will come to house sit. No one else knows – except of course now for several thousand Dibbers. For those that know who we are, please don’t say anything to the two boys ! So only a few people know we are going but almost without exception when we have mentioned that we are going on our own for a week, the response has been “ Oh, really ? a shopping trip ? Yeah right, you are going to get married aren't you ?” Definitely not the plan But the more people said it, the more we started to think about it . We have previously looked at getting married here in the UK but as its second time for both of us, it gets a bit complicated and we keep giving up when it comes to how large/small it should be . We had thought a lot about getting married next year in Tennessee with the 3 boys and I did quite a lot of research on the options including whether our parents could come over to join us. But sadly neither my Dad nor Andy’s Dad could really cope with the flight and looking at our dysfunctional family needs, it would frankly be the honeymoon from hell so we have ceased all thoughts of that . So what to do then – shall we ? Shan’t we ? Well, it’s a definitely maybe so the Judge came to be in the title but it remains to be seen how far we get . It took us 10 years to get engaged so making a decision during 10 days away might be pushing our decisiveness to the limit. Oh look, did you see that, it went from a week to 10 days in just a few paragraphs. How did that happen I wonder ? Edited May 11 th. Hmmm, the Judge just became a Minister. I wonder why that is ? Andy was very keen that this was not a park touring trip. Mwah mwah mwah. We all remember how that ended from last year ( the strictly no Disney trip that ended up with all the parks except MK, LOL). I was surprisingly ok with this – for about 10 minutes. When I looked at the dates I realised that the Christmas Decs would be up and there is NO WAY I can miss these. I showed him some photos of the Osborn Lights and he was really impressed. √ That will be on the list then. I have also said I would like a morning at MK to see the decorations and to look around Fantasyland as we haven’t seen that – I am happy to do that on my own though but secretly I am also looking at booking us in for a MVMCP as it looks like it will be super quiet – so that will be two parks then . Epcot is our favourite – will be interesting to see if we can stay away…….. And so the Mouse made his way on the title , LOL. Cant see that we will do Seaworld parks – love them but given the choice we would pick Universal. Just not go that far into our thinking So far then plans are Shopping, Eating, More Shopping, more Eating – although with our dieting this could be tricky. We have talked about maybe going to St Augustine for the day, or Clearwater or Kennedy Space Centre. Just not sure – we don’t want to cram too much in and the parks wont be the same for us without the boys –we don’t ride that much so it will be nice to soak up some atmosphere but fitting everything in just isn’t a priority. We will have time to “ smell the roses” and it will be lovely. Except for the having to tell the kids bit – that’s one reveal I am not entirely looking forward to ! And there we have it – The Wardrobe was to blame, The Mouse couldn’t be left out and the Judge will just have to see if we make it. Got to finish up for now. Next update will be when we are going , where we are staying, who we are going with and the all important dosh details ( subtext, OMG how much cheaper is it when you do go in term time ! ) to skip straight to the next update click here
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2022 Dom Republic /2019 New Orleans, Jekyll, Hilton Head, Charleston, Savannah, Palm Coast, Clearwater/2019 DLP /2018 Dubai /Miami,New Orleans, Orlando, Largo/2017 Dallas,New Orleans,Little Rock,Eureka Springs,Memphis,Nashville,Orlando/Mar 2017 Orlando, Clearwater, Largo /2016 NYC,Washington, Orlando /2015 Windsor Palms / 2014 Our Wedding Trip - Portofino Bay & Yacht Club / 2013 FantasyWorld Resort/ 2012 East & West Coast. Double Disney. Edited at 04:34 PM. Reason: Added second part |
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20 Apr 14, 04:40 PM |
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VIP Dibber
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I am so hoping that you have changed to Orlando or are going there too! Eagerly awaiting more!
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MY TRIP AND DINING REPORTS - July 2023 Ten (Not So) Little Ones Take the Adults ~~ Onsite/Offsite Dining Report - July 2023 - 4 people - £168 budget per day plus tips ~~ Another Birthday Trip, October 2019 ~~ The Land, Sea and Wedding Trip Report, October 2015 ~~. Sept / Oct 2013 Five Little Ones Take the Adults IG - Lisas29 and familyanddisney 00 / 01 / 04 / 07 /Xmas 08 / 10 / 13 / 15 / 17 / 19 / 23 |
20 Apr 14, 05:18 PM |
#4
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Thread Starter
I am not a shopaholic
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2022 Dom Republic /2019 New Orleans, Jekyll, Hilton Head, Charleston, Savannah, Palm Coast, Clearwater/2019 DLP /2018 Dubai /Miami,New Orleans, Orlando, Largo/2017 Dallas,New Orleans,Little Rock,Eureka Springs,Memphis,Nashville,Orlando/Mar 2017 Orlando, Clearwater, Largo /2016 NYC,Washington, Orlando /2015 Windsor Palms / 2014 Our Wedding Trip - Portofino Bay & Yacht Club / 2013 FantasyWorld Resort/ 2012 East & West Coast. Double Disney. |
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20 Apr 14, 07:19 PM |
#5
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Excited about Disney
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How funny, I just posted after you on another pre trippie and saw your countdown to Turkey, then saw this. Have loved your previous trippies so looking forward to your updates.
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20 Apr 14, 07:46 PM |
#6
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Imagineer
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Sounds fabulous Amanda. Can't wait to hear more.
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Sam |
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20 Apr 14, 08:00 PM |
#7
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Imagineer
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Great start Amanda, looking forward to reading more
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20 Apr 14, 08:17 PM |
#8
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Imagineer
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Sounds great Amanda look forward to reading more.
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Carole Hampton Lakes - October 2007, The Hamlets, Westhaven - July/August 2009, The Sanctuary, Westhaven - July/August 2012, Dibb Villa Highgate Park & 1 night at HRH - July 2015 2017 6 nights NY, 11 nights in Florida Dibb villa, Westhaven, Xmas 2018 Villa 1 night RPR 2019 7 nights in New York, 2020 Dibb Villa booked in Highlands, 3 nights in Cape Coral |
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20 Apr 14, 08:35 PM |
#9
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Imagineer
Join Date: Jul 08
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Love this pre-trip - so exciting! Really looking forward to seeing all of your plans unfold xx
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August 2006 RPR & Rosen Plaza; August 2008 RPR & Regal Sun; August 2009 RPR & Buena Vista Palace; July/August 2010 RPR & SSR; July/August 2011 & 2012 Loews Miami Beach, RPR & SSR; 2013 SSR & RPR: 2014 Rosen Plaza, SSR & RPR; 2015 Renaissance, RPR & SSR;2016 Cabana Bay, SSR & RPR; 2018 CB, Portofino, SSR 2019 St Petes, Renaissance & SSR |
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20 Apr 14, 09:48 PM |
#10
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Thread Starter
I am not a shopaholic
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thank you , I m looking forward to the planning
Thanks Sam, I still can't believe we actually booked it. Thank you , will need lots of support to look good for my photos Hello Carole. Thanks, I still can't believe we are going without the terrible teens That's lovely , thank you. I am ridiculously excited
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2022 Dom Republic /2019 New Orleans, Jekyll, Hilton Head, Charleston, Savannah, Palm Coast, Clearwater/2019 DLP /2018 Dubai /Miami,New Orleans, Orlando, Largo/2017 Dallas,New Orleans,Little Rock,Eureka Springs,Memphis,Nashville,Orlando/Mar 2017 Orlando, Clearwater, Largo /2016 NYC,Washington, Orlando /2015 Windsor Palms / 2014 Our Wedding Trip - Portofino Bay & Yacht Club / 2013 FantasyWorld Resort/ 2012 East & West Coast. Double Disney. |
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