The Prize for the most Indecisive Traveller

[WanderlustNZ]

Yay! How exciting that you've made your decision to go the Halloween Party! It's something that you'll remember for years to come, as will your DS. As our own trip gets closer (gulp), we have been having many discussions at the dinner table about our previous holidays. Last night my DD9 was talking about when we were at the Halloween Party in 2012 at DL and all of the awesome costumes. Her favourite was a guy dressed at the Pillsbury Doughboy complete with built in automatic air pump to keep him suitably plump. We lined up in front of him for about 45 mins to have our photo with Mickey and Minnie and he was almost like a character in his own right, people were asking to have their photos taken with him. Good memories. Have lots of fun, take heaps of photos, enjoy the spectacle and don't worry about the crowds, it's a fun night and everyone is there to enjoy themselves. Most importantly - it's Disneyland!

Cheers Liz. I kept thinking that if we saw people all dressed up entering Disneyland, I would feel a bit jealous like I was missing out on something.
I'm feeling excited now that I know the decision to go to the party has been made.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Glad you've made a decision. I agree that the bacon costume would be pretty hard to pick without the egg Sounds like they will suit what you need perfectly though. What about DS? Does he/Grandma have any ideas for his costume?

We're certainly not going to win any awards for best costume, but I feel kind of proud of myself that I'll be making at least some kind of effort this year. Even if we are basically just wearing stylised aprons.

My MIL is excited and is going to look for a costume for herself also.

As for DS, I feel a bit bad for MIL who I know would have really enjoyed making him another costume, but we ended up buying him one from Amazon also. We went to NZ's biggest crafts and fabric chain store today and the patterns for boy's costumes were lousy. DH was going to settle for a Ninja, basically because the only other options were knights, pirates, and biblical characters. But once we priced out the cost of the pattern and the fabrics, we figured we could buy him something he would prefer online for about half the price.

So we sat this afternoon and trawled through the hundreds online and he was adamant that he wanted a Finn outfit. Finn is a character from a cartoon he watches called Adventure Time. The whole cartoon is a bit odd to say the least, and I had my heart set on him getting this cute little Ghostbusters outfit. But at the end of the day it's not about what I want.

At least the good thing about the outfit is that it's very easy for him to wear and move around in and it won't be at all hot and stuffy. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C870THM/ref=pe_385040_30332200_TE_item

 

[PrincessInOz]

DS13 occasionally watches Adventure Time. I suspect that your DS will be taking Finn's head off before too long.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

DS13 occasionally watches Adventure Time. I suspect that your DS will be taking Finn's head off before too long.

It will be interesting to see how padded and heavy the head part is - not too much I hope. I think he'll cope with the temperature of the hat, but will probably find it annoying after about an hour.

 

[FireflyFi]

So we sat this afternoon and trawled through the hundreds online and he was adamant that he wanted a Finn outfit. Finn is a character from a cartoon he watches called Adventure Time. The whole cartoon is a bit odd to say the least, and I had my heart set on him getting this cute little Ghostbusters outfit. But at the end of the day it's not about what I want.

At least the good thing about the outfit is that it's very easy for him to wear and move around in and it won't be at all hot and stuffy. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C870THM/ref=pe_385040_30332200_TE_item

Cute! I've watched a bit of Adventure Time...I felt like I hadn't ingested the right substance/s to understand the humour, though kidding, of course! But I seriously don't see how it's all that funny - I must be getting old

You know, you could have expanded the bacon and eggs - he could have gone as a can of baked beans! Or a mushroom...maybe a hash brown?

 

[zanzibar138]

OMG I HATE that show I just don't get it at all, and it's on ALL the time!

I know what you mean about costumes though. They're so cheap these days that buying one seems to be cheaper and easier than making one from scratch. And there's such a huge variety as well, it seems like these days you can get a costume for practically anything.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Cute! I've watched a bit of Adventure Time...I felt like I hadn't ingested the right substance/s to understand the humour, though kidding, of course! But I seriously don't see how it's all that funny - I must be getting old You know, you could have expanded the bacon and eggs - he could have gone as a can of baked beans! Or a mushroom...maybe a hash brown?

Lol, I know what you mean. I'm just grateful that all the show's 'messages' go way over the top of my son's head. DS just sees a boy and a stretchy dog going around and saving princesses. For some reason Disney-style princes and heroes are lame and girly, but a boy with a strange bear-like hat is cool. Go figure???

I suggested a few food items to DS but he wasn't keen. Probably for the best. With DH and I not being the skinniest people in the world, we might start looking like the 'cholesterol family' if we were all dressed as food.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

OMG I HATE that show I just don't get it at all, and it's on ALL the time! I know what you mean about costumes though. They're so cheap these days that buying one seems to be cheaper and easier than making one from scratch. And there's such a huge variety as well, it seems like these days you can get a costume for practically anything.

Lol, I don't think 'clear-headed' adults are supposed to get that show. I wasn't too keen on the costume either, but it's inoffensive and will make DS happy, so I'm happy to go with the flow.

Costumes are so cheap and varied. It's a shame the same can't be said about the range of patterns. The advantage to having a costume made is that you can actually pick from quality, breathable materials. DS's pirate costume was made from cotton last year which was perfect for the Florida weather. Also, it seemed okay to spend so much on a costume as he wore it for Pirate's League, MNSSHP, and Pirate Night on The Fantasy.
This year is just doesn't feel as necessary to spend as much money on a quality outfit. Although a Ninja may have been preferable to Finn

 

[Tashinwdw]

I have never heard of that show, but as long as he is happy thats the main thing. kids and costumes are so much fun.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

... but as long as he is happy thats the main thing.

That's what I figure


Not much to add this week on the holiday booking front.

I had great plans to ring up the USA this week and pay off the remaining balance on the last 2 hotels. I wasn't going to bother until I got there, but with the dollar as strong as it is, I didn't want to look the gift horse in the mouth.

Unfortunately I can't string more than a sentence together at present without breaking into a coughing fit. I've been sick for days and after finally dragging myself to the doctors today, I discovered I have pneumonia. My doctor was so annoyed at me for not coming in earlier before it got this bad. Lesson learnt :-/

Anyway, I have my fingers crossed the kiwi dollar stays strong for at least the next few days.

 

[zanzibar138]

Oh no! Hope you feel better soon

 

[PrincessInOz]

Wanderlust - take care of yourself and get better. Pneumonia is not fun.

 

[Tashinwdw]

Thats not good at all, make sure you stay warm and cozy and take care of yourself, this cold winter weather will not help at all.

I will keep my fingers crossed that the dollar will get even better for you next week when you may be well enough to make all your calls.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Thanks ladies.

At the risk of sounding like a right whinger, pneumonia is lousy.

On the plus side, at least I'm on holiday at present and not chewing into my sick leave.

 

[Caroline NZ]

Hope you get well soon

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Hope you get well soon

Thanks Caroline.

I'm definitely heading in the right direction.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

While my planning for this trip hasn't quite come to a grinding halt, it has definitely slowed to a crawl.

I always feel a bit amiss when I reach this stage and there is very little left to do but save some spending money and wait.

In the last week I have booked Monkeypod for dinner one night (I decided I wanted to secure a table during happy hour) and I have also booked parking at the airport (wohoo, so exciting ), but mostly I have been dreaming about a future trip I want to do.

As I've mentioned previously, I have agreed to give up travel during 2015. A Lion King Dismeet is still a possibility, but that doesn't really count right?

Anyway, I am okay with this idea; I agree with DH that there are other expenses that need addressing. Plus it just gives me the excuse and time to save really hard for an exciting trip in 2016.

Being the obsessive planner I am, I've already ticked up quite a few hours researching where I next want to go, and I have narrowed my options down to four. With very little else happening on this PTR, I thought I'd throw up these options for thoughts or feedback.

1. South Africa - July 2016
I have seen some lodges I would love to stay in the Madikwe Game Reserve. They are very family friendly and are located in a Malaria-free zone, so a trip here would make for a family-friendly intro to Africa. I'd also be keen to stop somewhere like Singapore on the way home. Due to expensive flights, expensive lodges, and the time of the year, this trip would be a maximum of 3 weeks.

2. Alaska and Canada - July 2016
An Alaskan cruise and a few weeks spent driving around Canada. Much like the trip Shushh is planning. 3 - 4 weeks away.

3. Caribbean and WDW - Dec16/Jan17
Spend a few days at WDW checking out the Xmas festivities, back to back Caribbean cruises over Xmas and New Years, then return to WDW as the crowds calm down. I would have more time up my sleeve and a bigger budget by this time of the year, so we could go for about 5 weeks. I loved WDW and desperately want to go back. But I also hate being a creature of habit.

3. Europe - Dec16/Jan17
A white Christmas somewhere beautiful, perhaps even Lapland. Then time to explore parts of Europe we haven't been to. We'd travel for about 5 weeks.

At present Africa is leading the race, but no doubt I will change my mind a hundred and one times before I actually find myself in the position to book anything. But that won't stop me from asking my fellow Dis friends what they think.

 

[PrincessInOz]

I'll take ALL of them.

And yes, a LionKing DisMEet doesn't count.

 

[zanzibar138]

I like the idea of somewhere different, so Africa and Canada/Alaska would have to be the frontrunners for me. Otherwise Europe. You could really schedule a Disney fix into any of those - DLR for Canada/Alaska, DLP for Europe, and HKDL for Africa (if you're thinking of stopping off in Singapore anyway, it's not that much further ).

I know what you mean about the dilemmas of travelling. I almost hate to find places that I really love, as I really dislike the idea of travelling to the same places all the time It's ok when you can also fit new places in though (which is why DLR and HKDL are great as they're pretty easy to include as stopovers on the way to/from somewhere new).

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I'll take ALL of them.

Well, that's not much help

I'm pleased a Dismeet doesn't count. More like an expensive night out than a trip