“Think of a Wonderful Thought…”

I’ve only got 12 days to go until I leave for this grand adventure, but to tell you the truth, I’m more stressed than excited all of a sudden.  There’s just so much going on right now, and so much left to do!  And at this point, I don’t see how it will all get done. 

So, in an attempt to get myself as excited again as I was a few days ago–as excited as I should be–I’ve been looking up all the cool new stuff at WDW.  I haven’t been there in three years, so there have been quite a few additions.  “Monsters, Inc. Laugh Floor” is new, as is “Toy Story Mania”.  I think the latter looks especially fun.  (BTW, what is it with Toy Story and shooting gallery-type rides?)

Toy Story Mania

Some of my favorite attractions have also been updated since the last time I was at WDW.  “Hall of Presidents” has a new film, and they’ve also added Robo-Bama.  I may disagree with him, but the guy sure knows how to give a speech, and I’m sure it will just be a-political “We should all come together” type stuff.  I can get behind that. I know most people think this attraction is boring, but I really do love it!  “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Haunted Mansion” have also had major updates that I haven’t gotten to see yet.

I hope there’s going to be a lot more that I love about the program than just going to the parks.  But that’s the part that is the most familiar to me, and the familiarity is comforting right now.  I’m trying not to think too much about paying rent, hoping I get along with my roommates, trying to learn to cook for myself, possibly dealing with a tyrranical manager, and a million other things that just make me anxious.  I’m trying to focus on the part that I know will still be exciting, now matter how the rest turns out.  Because chances are, those other things will turn out fine, too.  And there’s no sense in worrying about them right now.

I’m Back!

Well, I’m back home, minus my luggage. I barely made my plane last night–the last flight out of Atlanta–but unfortunately my bags missed the plane, and I’ll have to pick them up today. So that was sort of a pain. But otherwise, my trip was great and I’m feeling refreshed and ready to get back to real life…and planning for Disney!

After I got assigned to a roommate, we emailed each other back and forth for a few days. I was double checking some of my Disney arrival information today on the College Program website, and decided to check and see if I was still matched up for a roommate. Well, guess what. I’m not. I don’t know what’s going on with that. The way that the website’s been, it may just be a glitch, or she may have found another roommate or whatever. I have no idea. Oh, well. So I’m signed back up, and we’ll see what happens. I’m actually thinking about taking this opportunity to opt out of roommate notification all together. I’m wondering if I’ll be happier waiting until I actually meet some people at check-in. Then at least I will be able to have some say in who I’m rooming with. Plus, it will add an element of surprise. And I like surprises!

I’m going to spend the next couple of days browsing the official website and the blogs, trying to figure out what my schedule will be like for my first few days at Disney. Since my mom is flying back, I will have to take her to the airport and the only direct flights are at the Sanford airport, which is about 45 minutes away from where I’ll be. The flights are all early in the morning, and we’ll have to figure out what day I won’t have to be at training early so that I can take her and be back in plenty of time. Whew! I’m tired just thinking about it.

Just one month and three days now until I’m on the road to Orlando!

A Quick Vacation-y Update

Well, hello there, friends! It’s been a while! I’ve been on vacation for the last few days with limited internet access, and limited interest in blogging (sorry!). It’s been a nice rest, so here I am for a quick update.

My wonderful grandma had some travel points, and used them to make reservations for my mom and I in Orlando. I’m not really sure which hotel she used them at, but I know it was close to Vista for check-in, and that it’s a reputable hotel chain. Sounds good! So this means that, even though we still haven’t sold our old house, my mom may go with me now because she was reluctant to pay for the extra 3 or 4 nights for her hotel. So now that’s taken care of. Thanks, Nana! 🙂 (yes, I call my grandma ‘Nana’. Don’t make fun of me!)

Well, now I’m off to do more vacationing! See you guys again in a few days when I return to real life. Happy 4th, everybody!

Some Less-Than-Two-Months-To-Go Musings

This past Wednesday marked the beginning of the two month countdown before I leave for Florida. Crazy. So I now have less than two months before I’m going to be living on my own, in a new city, working a new job, hanging out with new friends, living under a new, made-up name, going around with a new post-plastic surgery face…wait a minute. Those last two aren’t going to happen. But the first few are! And not only that, but I will also be going to Disney World basically every day! For free! Amazing.

I’ve begun to sever ties with Missouri. Last week, I notified the nursery coordinator at church that I would need to be off the schedule starting in August, and my boss is beginning to look for temporary help for the office while I’m gone. Today, I even kept the cardboard boxes when we got in supplies at work. I’ll need them to pack in!

I feel like I keep saying this here, but I just can’t believe that this is really real. Every day I get a little more excited, apprehensive, reflective, and prepared for the whole experience. A while ago I caught a special on the Travel Channel about Disney World. And I watched it, thinking how crazy it was going to be to pass Graumann’s Chinese Theatre every day on my way to work. Or to walk through Cinderella Castle on my lunch break. Unbelievable. In 58 days, I will be somewhere completey different, living an almost completely different life. And as scary as that thought is, I really, really just can’t wait. 🙂

Finalizing Travel Plans

My mom and I had another long discussion yesterday about travel plans for August. My last day of work will be Friday, August 7th. I’m planning to use Saturday to wrap up my packing, and then we’ll get on the road first thing Sunday morning. We’re going to break the 20-something hour trip up into two days–definitely an improvement over our Spring Break driving marathon. We have family in Alabama, so we’re going to make a little detour and spend Sunday afternoon and night with them. Then we’ll get back on the road at a leisurely pace Monday, and get into Orlando late Monday night. Tuesday, we’re planning to spend the day at the beach, and then Wednesday is the big day–CHECK-IN! (And Ikea. 🙂 )

This is all just tentative. My mom’s going to fly back, and they only have flights early Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings. So we may not leave until Monday, and then we could do the beach on Thursday. In fact, she might not even get to go–we’ve been trying to sell our old house for months now, and until that happens, the extra hotel bills and plane ticket may not be in the budget. We’ll just have to see.

But either way, it is exciting to have an actual plan. Just a little over two months to go now! So exciting! 🙂

Here We Go…

In a way, yesterday was the start of a lot of changes coming my way. Last night I said goodbye to my boyfriend, who is going back home for the summer to do his internship. I already miss him like crazy, and although we’re already planning meet-in-the-middle trips to see each other, it’s going to be a difficult summer. And to make matters worse, I probably won’t even see him before I leave for Florida. So for the next 7 months, my boyfriend and I will live half a country away from each other.

For a few months, this has been my countdown–how much time do I have left with Erik? But now the deadline is here, and, thinking about it this morning, I realized how many other deadlines have been creeping closer: I’ve only got two weeks left of classes, including my final exams. After that, I’ll be working full-time (location TBD, but I have a promising lead) and only be three months away from Disney.

I just have a feeling that things are going to start snowballing out of control (in a pleasant, exciting way) very soon. Before I know it August will be here, and I probably won’t feel ready. That’s just the way things go. But I’m trying to brace myself and prepare for all of the changes as best I can. That’s all I can do for now.

It’s Official…Let the Countdown Begin!

I just officially accepted my offer at Disney–I’ll be signing in on Wednesday, August 12, and I’ll come home on January 2. So exciting! Only 136 days to go! 🙂

Emily still hasn’t decided, but she told me to go ahead and sign up. Hopefully, if she decides to go, she’ll still be able to check in on the same day!

The only problem with my check-in day is that that my mom was planning on driving down with me, and that is probably going to end up being the same day that my brothers start school. She’s disappointed that she may miss their first day, but it’ll all be okay. And I’m really going to need her help–I’m already dreading making that Missouri/Florida drive again!

It took me two tries to log in (my home internet is crazy-slow!) but I finally got there. Signing up and accepting my invitation got me access to the CP-exclusive section of the website. There are all kinds of cool resources: everything from packing lists; to Eyes and Ears, the official Cast Member newsletter; to information about CM discounts (don’t worry–these are special enough to get their own post in the future).

I thought getting that my acceptance letter and folder made me feel excited; made it feel like it was all real. But now that I actually know the exact date when I will be arriving…well, I’ll just say that it’s an amazing feeling.