Okay... after all this planning, why do I feel so unprepared?

[LAMPSKIES]

Our first ever Land and Sea Feb 2000 we paid and waited for months. I had never been to WDW and DW was there when a child. We had been married 10 years and this was our first "real vacation". DW prepaired and reprepaired and packed and repacked and unpacked and re...well you get the drift. As our plane was taking off DW broke out in tears. DD then 9 says "dad I think Mommy misses home already". She laughed and all was great. It was an absolute prefect vacation. Yours will be also.
Good Luck and don't forget your checkbook and credit card!!!!!!!!!

 

[disneyholic family]

someone said the minute you get on the ship it all won't matter...
that's not true...
as you approach the port, the moment you see that ship...
well...you heart will do this thing in your chest and the rest won't matter...
we all were so excited, awed, thrilled, enthralled etc etc etc at the sight of the ship....even hubbie, who was merely tolerating the rest of us as we prepared for our first cruise...
and then each part of it was so exciting...
even driving up to the person at the gate who checks your tickets....then to the porter....then up into the terminal....
then waiting to board and talking to everyone around us (we were lucky to have Tony and Barb and CamColt and husband to chat with as we waited to board...
and then in line for the final wait...
then through security (even seeing the bomb dog was fun)...
and then onto the ship....and into lunch...and to our stateroom (we nearly fainted at how gorgeous that was)..
and then the kids to their stuff...and then exploring the ship and the spa....
the truth is, the excitement and enjoyment never stopped....
it was, without a shadow of a doubt, our very best vacation ever ever ever....and we've been to pretty spectacular places and resorts before and since...
but that cruise was incomparable.....hopefully, we'll get to go on another one soon....
and one things for sure.....i am positive you will enjoy every second of your cruise too...
i am TOTALLY jealous!!!!!!

 

[MrsPotatoHead]

disneyholic family - Your post reminded me of our first trip to WDW back in 1994. I remember being in tears the first time I saw the castle, the characters, etc.. I just KNOW we'll be the same way on the cruise!! And I know that even though some things will "go wrong" that we will still have the vacation of a lifetime! Our vacations never seem to go as planned, but we just quickly make adjustments. I just tend to get a little anxious before ANY vacation (I'm the worrier in the family), but going on a cruise is a new experience for us so I guess I'm just feeling a little more anxious than usual.

The good news is that when I'm stressed, I start to clean and organize things, like Monica on Friends. You should see how organized things are around here! Even the kitchen "junk drawer" looks beautiful at this point! LOL!!

Can't wait for our trip!!! Oh, and Dragon Lady, can't wait to meet you and your family!!! Have fun on your first WDW trip before the cruise!!

 

[house_of_princesses]

I'm lol at myself, because tears are running down my face. I'm thinking of all the first timers out there. Someone who breaks into tears at the thought she's finally on her way (after a year of planning, organizing, reading...), someone who is in a panic for fear of forgetting something. It's great everyone shares, and I'm crying at the excitement you're all feeling!

No one else could understand. It's a DiSNeY thing!!!

 

[imgoingtodisney]

I'll most likely be sobbing tears of relief once we get onboard the ship after waiting a total 23 months

 

[disneyholic family]

we've been going to WDW every year for the past 30 years....for 3 weeks each time...
and i can tell you, every single time we see one of the big WDW landmarks as we approach our hearts take a collective leap...
no doubt non-disneyholics think we're totally nuts, but who cares...
we love it and have a great time and that's what counts...

last summer was our first (and so far only) disney cruise (first cruise in fact, disney or otherwise)......like everyone else here, we were on pins and needles waiting for the time to roll around....and i planned and planned and planned.....and worried and worried and worried that the kids would be disappointed (since they had such very high expectations)...
well.....as i said in my earlier post......from the moment we saw that ship we were in seventh heaven.....and we didn't come back down to earth until we were on our way back to WDW after the cruise...well...not even then really, since we had another 2 weeks at WDW to soften the blow of the cruise being over...

really....don't worry about the cruise....it doesn't matter what you do or don't do on the ship.....take it easy and enjoy yourself.....
we didn't do at least 60% of what's available....it didn't matter...we loved every single second of every single day...
and a lot of the silly little nothing things were what i loved best...
just walking around the ship was lovely.....and i loved waving at the other ships at the sailaways....the ship is beautiful....the service was spectacular (well..of course...it's disney after all)....the food was excellent.....and well....
it was all just perfect.....as i said....the BEST vacation we have ever had....and we were only on the 3 day.....the only thing that could have improved it would have been being on a longer cruise...but even just for 3 days it was heavenly....i simply loved being on the ship.....i now understand the attraction of having a yacht.....there is something about being on a ship that is extraordinarily relaxing....and the fact that it's disney....well..how more perfect can it get...

have a great great time!!!! (i know you will)...

 

[angelaj]

Disneyholic - I was reading your post about the excitement of the first cruise, and my heart was soaring! I'm so excited about this I can't stand it. It's like my sister, MrsPotatoHead, said - we were crying our first day at WDW when we were standing in line for rope drop at the MK. We just couldn't believe we were finally there. We're going to be 2 blubbering idiots at the sailaway party next Saturday. I just can't believe that after 15 months of planning, it's finally happening. Life is good, and I count my blessings every day.

House of Princesses - reading your post about tears streaming down your face just about made me cry! You're right - there are not a lot of people out there who would understand. We DISers are a special breed.

 

[disneyholic family]

i guess you're going this week (unless it was today....).
anyway...have a wonderful time!!!
and remember not to wrory about what you miss among the activities....
the truth is i would have done less if not for my daughter...
she was 18 at the time, in that twilight zone age in terms of the ship activities......my son had a great time in the common grounds activities, but my daughter was too old for them and too young for the singles crowd...
so i became her buddy for the cruise...attending all the adult activities with her (dancing with her at the rockin d bar or whatever it was called...i can't remember anymore..)
anyway..
the point is, had i been on board on my own, i most likely wouldn't have participated in anything at all, and i STILL would have loved every second of the cruise...
as i said, probably more times than anyone wants to hear, just being on the ship was wonderful....i can't wait to cruise again...on disney only of course...

have a great time!!!! (i'm totally jealous)

 

[Moosysmom]

Reading the posts, brings me back and I was just on my first cruise March 8th. I've been to WDW 5 times and still tear up the first time I see the Castle.
The cruise I was a wreck, I had 8 lists, and couldn't sleep for about 1 week before. I was so excited. But I was worried it would be a let down. No such thing, it was better.
The bus ride to port was so nerve racking, but when the movie is over and you get to the top of the hill and see the Magic for the very first time it is awesome.
Enjoy the first time jitters, they are so very worth it.
I'm hoping for a Wonder cruise in October to suprise my mom for her birthday, just depends on work.

 

[angelaj]

Disneyholic - thanks for the post. I'm on the 4/26 Magic, so I leave in just a few more days. I ran all my errands Saturday and packed as much as I could yesterday, so I'm feeling a little less stressed out now. I'm so excited I just can't stand it! I watched the DCL show on the Travel Channel Saturday, and I had tears in my eyes a couple of times just seeing how wonderful and beautiful everything is. I just can't believe I'm going on such a wonderful trip. Seeing that show the other day reminded me of Disney's attention to detail and how much they go out of their way to make everything special.

5 more days to sailing!

 

[Cruzin1st]

This is our first cruise, too. We don't sail until June 7, but I'm already packing with my bedroom looking like we're leaving tomorrow. Our only other Disney trip was about 4 years ago to WDW. The trip was SO PERFECT, (except for a horrible United Airlines ticket agent who brought me to tears), with the weather in the 80's every single day with not a drop of rain. I want this trip to be wonderful, too, but my expectations are almost unrealistic, I think, partly because of the excitement I can't do without, on this board, and partly because the trip 4 years ago will be a hard act to follow. I'm so scared something will go wrong, but I need to relax and take it easy, and just go with the flow. I'm just so excited that I doubt any vacation could fulfill the expectations I'm trying to tame at this point. One thing's for sure: it must really be a wonderful experience.

 

[disneyholic family]

don't worry about the expectations...
we had very very very high expectations and the cruise was so much better than we could have possibly imagined....
no matter how much or how little you do, it's like being in heaven...
the staff was outstanding....the food was wonderful...
and the boat dreamy....

and there's something for everyone...

 

[imgoingtodisney]

I had very high expectations for our Nov cruise. Thats why its hurting so much. Afraid to get those high expectations back.

 

[Cruzin1st]

Disneyholic,
I know how you feel. When we went to WDW 4 years ago, I thought I would die having to leave. I thought my husband, who is a general contractor, could build roller coasters and I could drive the Disney bus or something, and we could live in DW and live happily ever after. I can't imagine a life without ever doing anything Disney again. I'm so afraid they'll have to drag me off the boat kicking and screaming. I'm wondering if I could get a job on the boat and just "boatschool" the kids. Probably won't work, huh?
Anyway, can't wait to see the ship.