Well, we didn't get to Disney in 1995 (we were in Hawaii instead - not a bad trade off!). But we knew we needed to plan another trip. 1996 was the 25th birthday celebration for Disney and we decided that this should be our next visit. Adrienne had been there in 1990 for the 20th anniversary, so this would be continuing a tradition. March turned out to be the best month for both of us and happily that was only 5 months away (compared with the 14 months we waited the first time!). But we got some bad news... the 25th celebration wasn't starting until October 1996. We would be there too early. I thought about it for a while and then proposed an idea to Adrienne. We could either:
1) go to Disney in March for a week and miss the party
2) wait over a year and go to Disney in November,
or...
3) buy an annual pass, go to Disney for a week in March and then return for a long weekend in November and stay at the Grand Floridian to celebrate, a little belatedly, our 30th birthdays!
Guess which one we decided to do!
Yes, with that stroke of genius, we made plans to go to Disney twice in 1996!
For the first visit we stayed at the . This is one of Disney's new value hotels and I can tell you that for $70 a night it is totally worth it! It may be tougher on families, but with just the two of us - spending very little time in the room - it was great. We were in the tennis resort, although neither of us play. The resorts have giant everything. For example, the stairwells looked like giant Spauling Tennis Ball cans -- 3 stories high. It made for some fun pictures. We purchased a food and fun plan again so that we could eat wherever we wanted without thinking about the cost each time (I highly recommend this) and we were off and running... and riding and eating and shopping and all those other good things!.
You might think that the second trip was less fun then the first since we had seen so much on that original trip. Nope! It was just as much fun, and we got to be more selective about what we saw and when. We saw more characters than before and had the video camera for the whole time, since Adrienne had purchased one. And, of course, we did several of our famous bathroom shots. What are those? Well, since we can never get both of us in the shot because one is handling the camera, we have learned how to shoot into the mirror of a bathroom so that we can both address the camera, each other, and any loved ones who are forced to sit at watch it!
Once again we started at the Magic Kingdom. We videotaped almost all of "It's a Small World". Dangerous. You'll hum it all day after just hearing it once. We did all our favorites, skipped those things that were fun once, and tried the things we missed on the first go-round (like the Tiki Tiki room).
This time we made it over to the Portrait Studio at the Disney Marketplace and had one of those sepia pictures done with us dressed up like southern belles. We were able to take a few color photos of this as well. We had hoped to do this on our first vacation, but never found the studio. Perserverence wins out!
The real memorable part of this trip was that it was FREEZING for the first few days we were there. We have pictures of us in our down coats at MGM!! And when we went shopping, we were constantly looking for sweatshirts and leggings to keep up warm. It was barely 50 degrees. It's a good thing we even had our coat, but for a while it hardly felt like we had left the North..
When it finally warmed up we made time to get some sun and even try out the newest waterpark . Adrienne even bought me this great set of white Minnie Mouse ears that had a veil attached to them, since my wedding was coming up that December.
We did spend a little time apart during this trip. I laid in the sun while Adrienne went to visit . She and I have a lot in common - but she likes cute fuzzy animals better than I do. I was worried about what would end up on the video (remember the baby bunny from the first trip), but actually it looked very nice.
All in all it was a great trip. We were thrilled to be back. And we couldn't wait for November....
This was the trip we had been waiting for!!
It felt so decedant being back in Disney for a second time in the same year. And using our Annual Passes once again. This time our visit was only for 4 days and 3 nights, so we were selective about how we spent our time.
This vacation we indulged ourselves by staying at the , one of the most beautiful of all the Disney Resorts, and a monorail resort as well. It cost more to stay there for three nights than it did for 6 at the All-Star Sports! But it was worth it. It was grand indeed and made this celebration visit all the more memorable. We even ate at "Victoria and Alberts", Disney's dressiest and most expensive restaurant. It was very nice, but a little more costly than we anticipated. A meal we are not likely to foget for many reasons.
This time the weather cooperated and it was beautiful for our entire trip. We did all of our favorites things, took lots of pictures of Cinderella's castle decorated like an oversized cupcake, and had, of course, a ball. We got our third set of pictures taken on Splash Mountain. Our second set from the Tower of Terror, and the mandatory character shots.
Since our last trip Adrienne had met a wonderful man, named Doug, and she was clear that this was the man she was going to marry, so during this vacation we were both calling home a lot.
But as memorable as the trip was, nothing was more exciting than what happened on our return. Although she didn't notice at first, Doug surprised Adrienne by showing up at the airport when we arrived back -- and with a Tigger in one hand and a diamond in the other -- HE PROPOSED!!!! It was so romantic and so perfect. She, of course, said yes, and Snow White finally had her prince!
But it's not over yet!! Now married, our heroines, decided that they had to go back one more time, before the little ones started coming!
Join us for our remarkable third trip which was as exciting in some ways as the first trip!
. This is one of Disney's new value hotels and I can tell you that for $70 a night it is totally worth it! It may be tougher on families, but with just the two of us - spending very little time in the room - it was great. We were in the tennis resort, although neither of us play. The resorts have giant everything. For example, the stairwells looked like giant Spauling Tennis Ball cans -- 3 stories high. It made for some fun pictures. We purchased a food and fun plan again so that we could eat wherever we wanted without thinking about the cost each time (I highly recommend this) and we were off and running... and riding and eating and shopping and all those other good things!.
and had the video camera for the whole time, since Adrienne had purchased one. And, of course, we did several of our famous bathroom shots. What are those? Well, since we can never get both of us in the shot because one is handling the camera, we have learned how to shoot into the mirror of a bathroom so that we can both address the camera, each other, and any loved ones who are forced to sit at watch it!
Once again we started at the Magic Kingdom. We videotaped almost all of "It's a Small World". Dangerous. You'll hum it all day after just hearing it once. We did all our favorites, skipped those things that were fun once, and tried the things we missed on the first go-round (like the Tiki Tiki room). 
. Adrienne even bought me this great set of white Minnie Mouse ears that had a veil attached to them, since my wedding was coming up that December.
. She and I have a lot in common - but she likes cute fuzzy animals better than I do. I was worried about what would end up on the video (remember the baby bunny from the first trip), but actually it looked very nice. 
, one of the most beautiful of all the Disney Resorts, and a monorail resort as well. It cost more to stay there for three nights than it did for 6 at the All-Star Sports! But it was worth it. It was grand indeed and made this celebration visit all the more memorable. We even ate at "Victoria and Alberts", Disney's dressiest and most expensive restaurant. It was very nice, but a little more costly than we anticipated. A meal we are not likely to foget for many reasons. 
You can get your own Free Home Page