Bear Hugs & Piggy Kisses - Baby's 1st Trip ~ Updated 12/6: Aulani TR Started!!!

[Dugette]

Hi, everyone, and to our much-anticipated first trip as a family of three! We started planning this trip before our little one was even born and it was every bit as magical as we'd dreamed. If you have an impressive amount of time on your hands, feel free to check out our Pre-Trip Report here: "We're Doing Disney Again Someday...Plus One!" (currently sitting at 38 pages long! and chock full of baby pictures, if that's your thing!)

On with the show! If you have not followed along with our travels before, let me introduce us. I am "Dugette", a 36-year-old new-ish mommy to a little princess. By day, I work in accounting. By night, I hang out on the DIS and sleep, if I'm lucky. I visited WDW a couple times as a kid when my dad had work meetings in Orlando and brought me and my little brother along. I loved it and knew I'd return someday.

I've been married to "Dug" for 8 years. He's a year younger than me, works in web and graphic design, and loves being a daddy to his little princess. He had never been to WDW until I suggested we go in 2009. And he was hooked.

We had such a great time that we planned a return trip in January 2010. We upgraded our tickets to Annual Passes and had a Year of Disney in 2010 - 5 different trips. It gave us something fun to look forward to and plan since the whole "having a baby" thing just wasn't working out for us during that time. 2011 was a rough year, so we managed to swing one more trip in October 2011 to cheer us up. A couple months later, on New Year's Eve, we found out that our little one was finally on her way!

2012 was full of pregnancy & baby excitement. And, before the princess was born, this trip was born! She was 14.5 months at the time of the trip and it was a great age to take her to our happy place. She loved it! It was a very different trip for us, but extra magical with her there by our sides to enjoy it.

Here we all are:



I've referred to our princess as "Dug Baby" thus far in the pre-trip report, but I can't call her that forever. And "Dug Toddler" really doesn't have the same ring to it. So, I'll refer to her by her real-life nickname in this report. This is Izzy, our little :



I hope you'll enjoy the tale of her very first visit to the Happiest Place on Earth!

Chapters
Intros

Day 1 - Sat. 12/7/13
It's Disney Day!
You Can Fly!
The Magic Begins
Have You Seen This Closet?!
The Chicken That Ruined Some Lady's Vacation
The Late Night - Part 1
The Late Night - Part 2
The Late Night - Part 3

Day 2 - Sun. 12/8/13
Morning Chaos
Under the Antlers
Under the Sea
Be Our Guest
Furry Friends
The Non-Nap
Guest Dis-Services
Crashing the Party
Time to Hoof It!

Day 3 - Mon. 12/9/13
Slowly Soarin' Over Epcot
The Morning Commute
Meeting the Mice (& Goofy)
"Breakfast"
All.The.Minnies!
Naptime, Eh?
Naptime, Oui?
Chocolate Horses & Tiny Trains
You've Got a Friend in Me
Never Eat Soggy Weet-Bix

Day 4 - Tues. 12/10/13
Tonga Toast Time!
Lost in the Wild
Kitties & "Ghees" Galore
The Wilderness Must be Explored!
What Does the Giraffe Say?
Squirrel!!!
Our Bird Friend
So Much Yum!
Never Too Young
That Awful Moment

Day 5 - Weds. 12/11/13
That Magic Moment - Part 1
That Magic Moment - Part 2
A Visit from Pooh Bear
A Visit from Piglet
A Visit from Tigger & Eeyore
Piggy Kisses
The Unmagical Carpet Row
Tikis and a Toddler
Bears, Birds, & Booty - Part 1
Bears, Birds, & Booty - Part 2
The Fairest Wall of All
Let Down Your Hair
Are You Coming Back?
Polynesian Photo Shoot
An Evening at the Poly

Day 6 - Thurs. 12/12/13
A Non-DIS-Meet
Lots of Legos
Invasion of the Cheerleaders
"Party" Time!
Party On, Dudes!
Not Soarin' Through the Queue

Day 7 - Fri. 12/13/13
Stitch's Great Escape
Raspberries
The Toy Story Mania Stroll
The Napping Goldfish
Yum, Crayon!
Wheeeee!!!!
Sleeping on the Boardwalk
Touring Tutto Gusto
Bear Hugs
Hi! Shark!
The Fiesta Before the Siesta
Bedtime at Epcot

Day 8 - Sat. 12/14/13
Evicted from Paradise
Spirit of Aloha
First Haircut
Hi, Mickey! Oh, Boy! Oh, Wow!
It's a Sleepy World
The Final Countdown
The Stunning Conclusion

Wrap Up
Wrap Up - Part 1
Wrap Up - Part 2


Off Topic
So, Um, Aloha? - Posted 12/28/13
NYC Planning - Posted 3/12/14
18 Month Photos - Posted 3/31/14
NYC Planning Update - Posted 4/6/14
Travel Day to NYC - Mini-TR - Posted 4/9/14
Full Day 1 in NYC Part 1 - Mini-TR - Posted 4/12/14
Full Day 1 in NYC Part 2 - Mini-TR - Posted 4/13/14
NYC to B&B - Mini-TR - Posted 4/17/14
Wedding Day - Mini-TR - Posted 4/17/14
Back to NYC - Mini-TR - Posted 4/19/14
Seeing the Sights in NYC Part 1 - Mini-TR - Posted 4/20/14
Seeing the Sights in NYC Part 2 - Mini-TR - Posted 4/20/14
Rain & Pain - Mini-TR - Posted 4/21/14
Last Day in NYC - Mini-TR - Posted 4/21/14
Going Home from NYC - Mini-TR - Posted 4/21/14
Dug's NYC Photos Part 1 - Mini-TR - Posted 4/22/14
Dug's NYC Photos Part 2 - Mini-TR - Posted 4/22/14
Dug's NYC Photos Part 3 - Mini-TR - Posted 4/22/14
More Non-Disney Travel - Posted 5/10/14
Spontaneity at it's Finest - Posted 5/22/14
Girls' Trip Planning - Posted 5/26/14
Mini Oregon TR - Part 1 - Posted 5/31/14
Mini Oregon TR - Part 2 - Posted 5/31/14
Pre-Trip Report for Next Week - Posted 6/4/14
Mini Oregon TR - Part 3 - Posted 6/4/14
Mini Oregon TR - Part 4 - Posted 6/5/14
Toddler Disney Training - Posted 6/8/14
Happy Father's Day! - Posted 6/15/14
Toddler Travels - Posted 7/11/14
Disney Training in Photos - Posted 7/20/14
Hawaii Planning & More - Posted 8/5/14
Aulani PTR Link - Posted 8/12/14
Under the Sea - Posted 8/17/14
Disney Attire - Posted 8/19/14
August Pre-Trip Report - Posted 8/24/14
Leaving Tomorrow! - Posted 8/29/14
We're Back! - Posted 9/3/14
Second Birthday! - Part 1 - Posted 9/22/14
Second Birthday! - Part 2 - Posted 9/22/14
2 Year Photos & Halloween Costume - Posted 10/29/14
August Trip Report Started - Posted 11/23/14
Aulani Trip Report Started - Posted 12/6/14

 

[DisneyDreamerMN]

Yay! Can't wait to hear all about the trip! Your little princess is so beautiful.

 

[Backstage_Gal]

Faithful lurker along for the ride here!

 

[MiaBella05]

joining in

 

[Imagineer5]

I'm here! adorable title!!

 

[Imagineer5]

posted before I read your intro. LOVE LOVE the sneaks of your poly photo shoot. OMG that pic of Izzy is TDF! Cute white shorts!

 

[Jennifer48]

I'm in! Excited to read about your first trip as a family of 3!

 

[wiigirl]

Following along!

 

[disneybarbie]

Subscribing

Emma x

 

[Majordis]

I followed your pre trip report. Can't wait to read about the trip. You have a beautiful daughter

 

[reelmom]

Yay! So excited you have started. Gorgeous pictures. I can't wait to see more. Although it is gonna seem different not calling her Dug Baby, I love the name Izzy.

 

[mousehappync]

Super sweet baby! Can't wait to read more!

 

[jc040404]

So excited that you've started your TR! The family pic at the Poly looks great! Izzy is such a cutie. I can't wait to follow along with the first trip.

 

[reelmom]

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!!!!

 

[dramaqueenemj22]

yay! I have been waiting for this TR! Can't wait to hear all about it!

 

[Dugette]

Yay! Can't wait to hear all about the trip! Your little princess is so beautiful.

Thanks! Glad to have a fellow Minnesotan along for the ride!

Faithful lurker along for the ride here!

Yay, a friendly lurker! Glad you're here!

joining in

You must go through a lot of popcorn while reading trip reports! Welcome, glad to have you along again!

I'm here! adorable title!!

Thanks! There were some pretty adorable moments!

posted before I read your intro. LOVE LOVE the sneaks of your poly photo shoot. OMG that pic of Izzy is TDF! Cute white shorts!

The photo shoot was great and we got a ton of photos (many pretty good) from it! Worked out great - worth every penny!

I'm in! Excited to read about your first trip as a family of 3!

and thanks for following along!

Following along!

Hi, good to see you here! Enjoy!

Subscribing

Emma x

Hi, Emma! Glad you're here!

I followed your pre trip report. Can't wait to read about the trip. You have a beautiful daughter

and glad to have you along! And thank you!

Yay! So excited you have started. Gorgeous pictures. I can't wait to see more. Although it is gonna seem different not calling her Dug Baby, I love the name Izzy.

Ha, I'm going to have a hard time transitioning too. But I had a hard time before not slipping her name in on accident too. You're still welcome to call her Dug Baby if you'd like!

Super sweet baby! Can't wait to read more!

Thank you so much and

So excited that you've started your TR! The family pic at the Poly looks great! Izzy is such a cutie. I can't wait to follow along with the first trip.

Thanks so much! Yes, the photo shoot went great! We used that family shot on our Christmas cards this year!

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas!!!!

It was pretty good! I'll post a few pictures next. Thank you! Hope yours was good too!

yay! I have been waiting for this TR! Can't wait to hear all about it!

and glad to have you here! Enjoy!

 

[Dugette]

Hi, everybody! Hope happy holidays are being had by all!

Just a little off-topic update tonight to tide you over until I get the TR going.

Since we were at WDW in early December, we really didn't get into decorating for Christmas this year. We didn't want to set up the tree before we left, since Kitty would just eat it (yes, our cat enjoys artificial tree needles very much). And we were exhausted and busy upon our return. I made a last-minute effort and put up our mini-tree and some random decorations, though. There are two whole ornaments on the tree, both purchased on our WDW trip, since I didn't want to unpack all the others from their garage storage:



Could be worse, right?

Anyway, Izzy had a great Christmas. We spent the morning at home, first letting her dig into her stocking. We gave her the slinky that I'd got for the plane ride, but never took out (um, spoiler? sorry). She loved that. Got her a set of keys, which she loves to play with in the car. And she got the little Ewok that Dug picked up for her in the Star Tours gift shop:



Yes, Ewoks are very huggable!

After opening a few things at home, we headed to the in-laws' house. Izzy got all kinds of fun things for Christmas, some from Disney, like her Jedi Duffy bear and this Jedi Mickey (with tasty lightsaber!):



Do you see a theme? You can tell which gifts Dug selected. Not to mention the purple lightsaber he custom made for her. Which she loves to walk around the house with. Pretty cute.

She also got a stuffed Piglet from WDW to remind her of good times on the trip.

Santa brought her about the coolest ride-on toy I've ever seen. It's a Minnie Mouse airplane:



This thing is so cool! She seems to be enjoying it so far.

All in all, we had a really nice holiday.

However, we got our biggest Christmas surprise the day after Christmas. But first, the backstory. On Christmas Day, Dug's parents had been talking about how they'd like to go to Hawaii for their 40th anniversary (December 2014) and how great it would be if any of the kids could make the trip to celebrate with them. So, during my break at work on Thursday morning, I decided to look up how much airfare to Hawaii was, since I really had no idea and the cruise they wanted to take while there was already too much for our budget. I threw the info into yahoo travel to just get a general idea. December wasn't available yet, so I tried October. And the listing for Delta was about $120 (the rest were $500+). I did a double-take. That couldn't be right.

I went to Delta's website and plugged the info in. Yes, same crazy low rate! Tried November 2014...even lower - less than $100 round trip! No way!

I got Dug on the phone and he got his parents and sister on the phone, trying to coordinate things, in case this was actually something that we could get. I pulled up the dates in November that worked best for us and found that it was only about $3 or so more per person to get first class fully refundable tickets. Hey, why not? Got everything ready to go on my computer - just had to hit submit. Waited for his family to say those dates were okay, then pulled the trigger, since I didn't want to wait a second longer than I had to. Decent fares always disappear on me before I can book them, after all. And I had nothing to lose on this fully refundable crazy deal anyway. I fully expected to get some kind of error message, but....I got a confirmation! No joke, we have three first class tickets to Honolulu, Hawaii for $212 TOTAL ($70/each). First Class, no less! I am still pretty much in disbelief about this.

However, when Dug's family tried to book, the rates shot up over $1000, I believe. We must have just made the window of Delta's error. Whew. However, his sister was able to get on Google Flights (didn't even know that existed!) and get an alternate trip that was still showing for cheap. So, Dug's parents, sister, and BIL are going one month from now (his dad really needed a getaway this winter), to Maui, for $55/each round trip (coach).

So, after all that fun, we were all pretty much holding our breath and expecting a call or email from Delta telling us that this was, indeed, too good to be true. Well, after a little time had passed, the news articles started popping up on the internet about Delta's website glitch...and Delta was saying they WOULD honor the erroneous fares! WOW!!!!!!!

So, um, we're taking an unplanned trip to Hawaii next November. Izzy (who will be 25.5 months at the time) will get her very own seat in First Class! Ha! I still can't really wrap my brain around this. I feel like I've won some very odd contest or something. Just amazing, but a little unreal.

The crummy thing is that the whole point of this was to celebrate my in-laws' anniversary together and, instead, we are taking separate trips, none of which line up with the anniversary. So, I guess we're back to square one on celebrating that. I'm sure we'll figure something out, though.

And now, we have an unanticipated 9-night stay on Oahu to figure out! Realistically, we are not going to have much of a travel budget, due to going to New York in April for a week for my husband's brother's wedding. But, with dirt cheap airfare to a bucket list destination (neither of us has been to Hawaii), we have to do this.

The cruise the in-laws raved about (they did before and wanted to do again) would be over $4k for us, since Izzy counts as full-fare on Norwegian (no kids rates). That doesn't include excursions, hotels before/after, rental cars, etc. As cool as it would be to see several of the islands that way, it's just too much.

Naturally, being the people we are, we looked at Disney's Aulani Resort. Also not cheap.

My husband's co-worker has timeshares in Hawaii, so we took a look at that. Looked at hotel options.

We still don't know what we are going to do (need to run numbers and figure out exactly what we want to do on Oahu), but we are leaning towards renting DVC points and staying in a Standard View Studio at Aulani for the whole trip. And renting a car (free parking with DVC unit). The rental would be around $2400, which is WAY less than the rack rate of a room there, even with the discounted gift cards we always pay for Disney things with. Speaking of that, even though we cannot use gift cards to pay for the DVC unit, we can use gift cards for dining and other on-site expenses during the stay. And we actually have about $450 leftover from our WDW trip.

Anyway, I've been reading up on Aulani as much as I can while "working" the last couple days. It sounds pretty great. Maybe I'll start a pre-trip report, if they do those for Aulani. We'll see. Still a bit up in the air on everything, but so excited!

Anyway, Izzy wants us to get this trip report on the road:



I'll try to get it going soon. Have a great weekend, all!

 

[reelmom]

I saw the news about Delta's error the other day. How cool that you were able to take advantage and that Delta is going to honor it. You must do a pre trip/ trip report for it. I think your little Christmas tree was cute. We never put a big one up until the boys were a little older. Just made it easier on me to not have to worry about them tipping it over. Love the fact that Dug got Izzy Star Wars toys. And her Minnie plane is adorable.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

joining - Izzy is such a cutie.

That's amazing with the flights to Hawaii. We actually saw the news story about that and were thinking how cool it would be if someone was just kinda "fantasy booking" flights and came across that and would be able to go when they never thought they could ... and low and behold that did happen, and that person is you!

oh, and that ride on minnie plane is super cool!

 

[IheartDDuck]

I'm joining! I can't wait to hear about your first trip as a family of three.