Disney Dream January 22, 2018 - 4 Day Bahama Cruise

I have been reading about the FE groups and we are interested!! How do we join one? We are first time Disney cruisers
Erin, I am resending the FE questions via PM. please check your inbox. I need the information from that PM to get you all set up for the FE.

~Tink~
 
Hello, everyone! I am excited I found this board. We will be sailing for my son's 4th b'day. I was interested in doing the fish extender exchange but am not sure of how it works. We are traveling with my husband, our son, and my parents. My son's b'day will be celebrated on the ship and we thought this was a great age to go. We have done the WONDER in February of 2013 (just us 2), and DREAM in March 2015 (us 3, and a bunch of others). I hope the weather is nice in January, as the last time we were at Castaway it was 100 degrees and we didn't get to do much because our son was only 14 months old. We are from Atlanta, GA. I look forward to hearing more from you all!
Megan, please reply to this post so I can help you get set on the FE.

~Tink~
 
Hi all! This is our second Disney cruise! Last time we went around the same time and we are staying in the exact same cabin too! Haha guess we loved it some much we didn't want to change. It will be myself, my DH(Steve)and our two children Nathan (8) and Aubrey (3). We are from WI so we are exited to get away during the winter months. Any FE lists going? We loved participating last time! :sail:
Just checking, did you still want to be part of the FE?
 


Happy Monday everyone!!!!
We are down to 13 Mondays until our cruise!!!!

I was planning a special forget me not this week, and I was going to have a video to go with it. Unfortunately, the lens on my camera is cracked, and I have to wait for the replacement to arrive so that I can get the video ready. While fretting over my camera, I started to look back at previous cruises for an inspiration for today. I found one that I think is just as relevant today as it was back in January (as there are still travel advisories pertaining to this matter). Keep a look out for a 'Special Edition' Forget Me Not sometime this week. As for now....

This weeks Monday Forget Me Not is inspired by an email I got, just prior to our last cruise from Disney Cruise Line warning us about the Zika Virus. :cold:
(I have attached the email to the end of my reminder.)

Anytime you travel to areas that are prone to mosquitoes it is a good idea to have a defense plan. In central and south Texas, this is a battle we prepare for in early Spring every year. If you are not used to fighting off this sucky pest, I have a few tips.

You will read in the email from Disney that a bug repellent with DEET is recommended. However, several people are severely allergic to DEET. There are good repellents out there that are DEET free. Bull Frog sells what we call bug screen. It is a sunscreen that has a bug repellent in it. Also, we use Sun X towelette sun screen (I mention this because the same company also makes a bug repellent towelette - there are actually quite a few companies that make an easy to use towelette applicator including Avon {Skin So Soft}).
If you want to stay away from the liquid / lotion type all together, there are bug bands available (little stretch bracelets, or live strong type of bracelets). There are a few different types out there (if you would like a picture of one, I can post the type that we got last season from groupon. Theirs advertises that 1 band lasts for 100 hours...we find that about 3 days is the limit). As I just mentioned, you can find them on groupon. If you are in an area that does not have a mosquito problem, you may need to search some place like San Antonio or Houston's groupon page to find them. I have also seen a similar product in the camping section of our local Walmart. However, they are starting to run out of them this time of year, and they will usually not restock until early spring.
Finally, a solution that works for a good number of people ( I am not sure if the difference between working or not is due to blood type, or body chemistry), is peppermint oil (it is one of the essential oils). I know you can find the actual oil at health food stores, but we have found that anything with peppermint oil in it works. Mine and my youngest son's favorite is a hand sanitizer spray that has the peppermint oil in it. EO peppermint hand sanitizer is the one we get from Lucky vitamin (online). With the spray, you are getting the sanitizer, which comes in handy on the boat (we like to have more than just the sanitizer wipes they give you before entering the dining areas), and the peppermint all in one. Bath and Body sells a Twisted Peppermint lotion, soap, and I think hand sanitizer during the Christmas season.

I would suggest putting what ever type of bug repellent you plan to use on your shopping list soon. The farther away from summer we get, the harder it will be to find.

Here is the email I received from Disney just prior to our cruise last January:

Important Information About Your Cruise
bottom.jpg

Reservation #:

Dear...,

We appreciate you booking a Disney Cruise Line vacation.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a travel alert for countries and territories in Latin American, the Caribbean and Bahamas
where Zika virus, a mosquito related illness, has been found. They have also issued specific guidance for people living in or traveling to a specific areas in
Florida.

The precautions recommended by the CDC are similar to those to prevent other mosquito borne illnesses and include wearing long-sleeved shirts and long pants
and using EPA-registered insect repellents containing an active ingredient such as DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus or IR3535 according to the label.
While the most common symptoms are usually mild and include fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes, pregnant women should pay special attention to the travel
alert and take necessary precaution to avoid mosquito bites.

Additional information can be found under the Travelers Health and Zika virus update sections of the CDC website at http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices and
http://www.cdc.gov/zika.

Should you have any questions related to your sailing, please feel free to call us at 800-939-2784 or 407-566-7000.

Sincerely,

The Cast and Crew
Disney Cruise Line
 
Just curious, are we traveling with anyone in the medical field? My son it getting very close to taking his EMT test, and he will be missing a class and a ride along while we are gone. So I was just wondering if there was anyone that may be able to quiz him our just chat shop? I know you are on vacation, and I don't want to take that away from you, so I wouldn't be hurt if your not interested?

~Tink~
 
I promised another post similar to my Monday Forget Me Nots this week, and here you go. By the way, sorry it took so long, I had to wait for my replacement phone before I could film the video that goes with it. I will put a link to the video at the end of the post.

Here is an opportunity for you and your kiddos to get prepared for your magical night in Animator's Palate. For our 1st time cruisers, I am not going to reveal all of the magic of your dining experience in Animator's, but I do want to help you have the most magical one possible.

The night that you dine in Animator's Palate, your Disney cast invites you to become a Disney Artist. During that nights dinner, the magic happens all around you, and it seems to happen quickly at times. So just a little bit of helpful advice, 1. Make sure you are on time for dinner that night, you are going to want every minute you can get before your first course is served; 2. Keep your eyes open, and your cameras ready.

When you enter Animator's for the night (after your welcoming hand sanitizing wipe of course), you will find a dining room that does not appear to be prepped for dinner. Instead it looks like it is ready for an art class. When you are seated at your table you will find markers, and one of these sheets in place of the plates. (here is a link to the downloadable google doc: https://docs.google.com/drawings/d/1GkPjt4dkXtzFz-Hp3edSsKtFgJJrYctPtEVq0FLn8EU/edit?usp=sharing)
animators blank artist sheet.png

Once you get seated let your creative ideas flow.
Aside from the few instructions you see noted, there are some others that will help you get the most magic out of the rest of your evening. If you take a look at the sample pics, you will notice that the characters are with in the lines, full of details, and not drawn into any of the grey areas. If you use those basic ideas, you will be very happy with the results. If you want to practice before our sailing date (which is a good idea for little ones so they do not become overwhelmed or feel rushed) you can save this picture so that you can print it up later.
I mentioned at the beginning that I held off on posting this, because I wanted to be able to release the video at the same time. On the video, I show you the best ways to have great results, and what types of drawings have not such stellar results. You can watch the video here: Tink Moments Animator's video

The best way to embrace the magic on a Disney cruise is to embrace it, get involved, and never be afraid to ask for what you want.

Have a great weekend,

~Tink~
 
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Okay, I was let down easy, and informed that I have been away from the Disney Dream for way to long. By my recollection, I thought that all of the boats were now doing the 'Draw Your Character' portion of the dinner. Unfortunately, on cruises that are to short to repeat dining rooms, they do not offer this treat.
On the up side of this, cruisers that are already Disney cruising addicts, this will come in handy for future cruises. And for 1st time cruisers, you have something to look forward to after a day or two on the boat and your addiction kicks in.

~Tink~
 
Happy Monday everyone! We are down to only 12 more Mondays. :eek:

Today's Monday Forget me Not's is not only looking forward to our cruise, but thinking about after the cruise as well.

This week I thought it would be a good idea to remind everyone not to forget that no one likes to come home after a trip, and be reminded that their vacation is over.

One thing that always is the rude awakening that it is time to get back to the daily grind is vacation laundry. I don't know about your family, but mine definitely makes more dirty clothes on vacation than in a normal week. :laundy:

No worries though, there is a solution. Our home away from home comes equipped with do it yourself laundry rooms. If you plan ahead, utilizing this amenity before disembarkation will make the return to civilization a bit easier. To prepare, toss a collapsible laundry basket into your suitcase, along with a few single load detergent packs (if you happen to forget detergent, they do have some available at Disney prices ). And the machines do not require change. All you have to do is swipe your key to the world card, and you are set.

If you don't plan to wash all of your clothes, it still is nice to do a quick load of all the swim gear. The chlorine, sun screen, and beach smell don't smell as good as they did on vacation, after they have sat in a plastic bag inside your suitcase for several hours. A word of advice though, if you are planning to do a load after a fun day at the beach, please, please rinse the sand out of your suit before putting it in the washing machine. There is a large wash sink in the laundry rooms for just that purpose. When sand gets into those machines, everything gets all clogged up, and your clothes just don't come clean.

Have a great week -
~ Tink ~
 
Okay, I was let down easy, and informed that I have been away from the Disney Dream for way to long. By my recollection, I thought that all of the boats were now doing the 'Draw Your Character' portion of the dinner. Unfortunately, on cruises that are to short to repeat dining rooms, they do not offer this treat.
On the up side of this, cruisers that are already Disney cruising addicts, this will come in handy for future cruises. And for 1st time cruisers, you have something to look forward to after a day or two on the boat and your addiction kicks in.

~Tink~
So ours will or will not have it?
 
:oops: I am sad to say that it won't :sad1::sad:.
Sorry if I got anyone's hopes up.
It is still my top pick of the 3 dining rooms, and there is still fun Disney magic that you can't get in any other dining room. So all is not lost.
If you are a newbie, or this is your first sailing on either the Dream or the Fantasy, promise me that you will come find me after your dinner in Animator's Palate and let me know your favorite magical part of your dinner.

~Tink~
 
Happy Wednesday everyone. I know I missed Monday, but I have been a bit under the weather. We are now down to 11 Mondays until we set sail.
I had another Forget Me Not planned for this week, but I decided to postpone that for a week, and share a little bit of the belated Halloween spirit this week.

Today, I wanted to remind you to bring your Ears! :earboy2: I know you all already have a set attached to your head, and those are not the ones I am referring to. I am talking about your favorite Mickey / Disney Ears. I don't know about you, but I would not make a trip to any of the Disney parks without my ears. Well, the cruise is no different. Characters and cast members alike love to see guests immersing themselves in the magic. And one way to do that is to show off your favorite pair of Mickey Ears.
(This years Halloween and my boarding outfit!)

Donald outfit.jpg

If you are planning on get pictures with characters, Mickey Ears always make a nice addition to your wardrobe, plus, it is fun to see the characters reaction to your choice.
You will see me sporting my Minnie Ears ::MinnieMo on my Disney Cruise sailor hat on day 1. Beyond that, who knows when the Mouse spirit will strike.
If this is your first time sailing with Disney, but you have visited the parks before, plan to show your excitement the same as you would at the parks. After all, we are actually going to be on a floating Disney park!
me cute profile pic.jpg

And if you find you don't have enough luggage space for your ears, just wear them when your boarding!
One extra bonus of having your ears with you, is they work great to decorate your cabin with. We like to liven up our cabin with not only our ears, but my Tink wings as well.
Don't be afraid to let the kid in you out. :mickeyjum

~Tink~
 
Hi everyone! We are sailing with you all! This is the first Disney Cruise for my husband and I and our son (age 7) and daughter (age 3).
So glad I found this page! We totally want to get in on this Fish Extender action. Where can I find more info?
Thanks!
 
Welcome aboard [QUOTE="LindsayHileman[/QUOTE]!!
:welcome::welcome::welcome:
I will add you to the FE list, and share more about the FE in the next post. However, for starters, I like to use the PM (or inbox) function for getting info for the FE to help keep your information more private. The DIS boards rules require you to make 10 posts before I can send you or you can send me (or anyone else) a message. You are already on your way with 1 post. All you have to do is make 9 more posts. They don't have to be anything to long. You can introduce yourself, tell us what you like about Disney, ask any questions that are gnawing at you, just say hi, or count down you needed posts. I will let you get started on that, and I will get some more info about the FE together for you.

~Tink~
 
Here are some frequent FE questions I get and my answers to them:

Since I am new to the FE fun... Is there major do's and dont's? What is a popular favorite? Any unsaid rules?​

Also, just to be sure I have enough stuff... I should plan on daily gifts for everyone in my group? Or is it one or two families a day? What is the norm?​

Thanks for everything, G​

My reply:


All great questions! If you don't mind, I am going to answer you here, and post your questions on the thread and answer them there as well, for those that may have the same questions, but have not asked yet.

As for do's and don'ts, the only limitations would fall on the limits you put on yourself, or the ones the boat puts on all passengers. For example, one family may put a spending cap on the cost of the FE's per cabin at $5 (which is well with in a home crafted gift), while another family who may not be as crafty, puts a spending cap of $10 per cabin because they plan to buy pre-made gifts. As for limits set by the boat, a quick read of the FAQ section of the Disney cruises web site (https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/prohibited-items/list/) will give you a good idea of things you are not allowed to bring on board (such as, you can not bring a bottle of wine for each of the cabins, unless you have 5 to 9 adults in your cabin, and you can't bring seeds on board, because we are not allowed to take seeds through customs when we disembark, etc).

As for unsaid rules, The main one that I can think of is the same rule we give our teens as they board the boat or enter any of the parks, or start down the the path to a middle school type conversation - 'Keep it Disney'. By this I do not mean that every gift should be Disney in theme or nature, just that it should be G rated and have the 'for families seal of approval'. Just an FYI, 'Keep it Disney' is a rule given (and explained) to all Teens that participate in any of the Vibe or Edge activities.

Now, the question of what is popular / favorite, that is simple, if you and your family would love to get that as a gift, than chances are, so will the other cabins. For example on our last cruise, we received gifts pretty much every day, sometimes multiple gifts a day, and each and every gift was unique. We loved them all, and still use many of them. I will include a list of some of the gifts we got on the last cruise on the bottom of this response as a jump off point for FE brainstorming ideas.

The list of Allergies, favorites, and pin trader (yes or no) is included on the list of questions for the FE info to help personalize the gifts if you so choose. If I happen to decide to give out pins to the cabins who are pin traders, I definitely would try to match their pins to their favorite character. The same would go for giving door magnets as gifts.

Your last question has a similar answer to your first question. I don't think there is actually a norm. I have been in groups with people who do one gift per cabin, and will either deliver them all on the first sea day, or spread out the delivering to a few a day. When they spread it out, they try to plan ahead for when they anticipate being in that area of the boat to deliver the gifts at that time....Side note (or a Tink moment as my family would say) For those who are considering the plan of handing out gifts for when you are in that area, or a good distribution time/ day I will be making a cabin map for the group before sailing to help everyone with finding cabins.... Okay, back to the question...In the same group, there are families who will distribute several different gifts to the cabins in their group through out the cruise. As for our family, we typically like to try to have a gift for each cabin each day. This year will be a little different though. One other point that I have heard asked before, is do I give a gift for each person in the cabin, or is the gift for the whole cabin? On the chance of sounding redundant, think about what would be enjoyed by your family / cabin, and set that as your guide. Just as I had mentioned at the beginning of the post, the only limitations for FE giving fall upon how you limit your self, and how Disney limits it's cruisers.

I hope this helped and did not leave anyone more confusion. If it did lead to more confusion, I am sorry. If you want to chat about possible ideas, or need a sounding board, just let me know. I would be happy to help. Here is a list of some of the items we received on our last cruise:
beach toys
clothes pins
paracord bracelets
tins w/ candy
pins
coasters
personalized post cards to send back to friends
door magnets
pirate goodies
book marks
various different items with the group name, and logo / picture ( we named our last group, and I drew up a picture for the group)
special items for cabin celebrations (we were celebrating a graduation, so we received something for that)​
That is all I can think of off the top of my head!

Have fun creating!

~Tink~
 
Here is little bit more of a personal side to FEing:

To explain how you do FE's is kind of like explaining how you do Disney. When you think about how many different people do FE's, that's how many different opinions there could possibly be. So........with the idea of saving you some time, I will try to keep it short (try being the optimal word here!!!!)
My belief / stand / theory on FE's is that it is all about being part of the magic making experience. Although you will hear varied thoughts across the DIS boards, I have received feed back from most of our participants that they feel as I do, and it is not about how big, or how much, but instead that you thought about the person you are gifting to, and they thought about you.
As for previous groups of FEers, there were some that planned one big family / cabin gift, some that did an adult gift for each cabin, and a gift for each kiddo, some that did individual gifts for each person, and then others that did daily gifts which include some kid gifts, some adult gifts, and some family gifts.
Now as for you, I will tell you what I tell everyone that asks me this question. When you are deciding how you will gift on this sailing (because each sailing is unique) first think about how much time you will have both before we sail (to make / gather / put together the gifts), and how much time you will want to set aside during the cruise (to distribute the gifts - it will take about 15 minutes per set of gifts you deliver to 10 cabins). Then decide what your budget for gifting is. With these 2 key factors figured out, you will have a better picture of what will work best for you.
And please keep in mind, that yes, this is a lot of fun (both the giving and the receiving), but it is only a part of your vacation. Don't sacrifice the vacation that you are working so hard to enjoy.
I hope that answer your question. If not, feel free to tell me that my round about answer was more confusing than anything, and that a tinker fairy can do better!!!! o_O:sad:
Just kidding, you don't have to be that over the top, just let me know and I will try again.
~Tink~
 
Hello!

I am Bobbi, and my friends, Patricia and Tina just booked this cruise! I’m Platinum, Patricia is Silver, and this is Tina’s first cruise on DCL.

On many of my cruises, I have organized a Local Candy/Snack Exchange. We use Fish Extenders to pass out local or regional snacks from our area, and we print out something from the Internet explaining something about our offerings. In previous cruises I have gotten cheese straws from Mississippi, Peach candies from GA, caramels from Baltimore, Hershey chocolate from PA, and Key Lime treats from FL. I used to live in Ohio, and found that Life Savors were invented in Cleveland.

We give enough to each cabin to share. I keep groups between 6-11, so no one gets a sugar overload. I ask for allergy information. Right now, I would be interested in finding out interest. Reply here if you are interested. Sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I will ask you to PM me with your cabin information, and by the New Year, you will have the list in your group.

Once there were only 3 participating cabins, that’s fine!

Candy/Snack Exchange interest

Bobbi:boat:

PS. I was happy to be able to book the Frozen And the Princess Meet and Greets!
 
Welcome once again Bobbi!
I am happy to hear that y'all were able to get through with your place holder changes. I will go ahead and add you to the roll call,
and add a candy/ snack exchange to the list of possible activities.

~Tink~
 

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