Crystal~ You know, I never looked; but you might want to check the Disney Store for the pins. They might have a starter kit there too, and it may be a bit cheaper. Something like that, and some autograph books would make great Christmas and birthday gifts for your kids, leading up to whenever you take your trip. It is going to cost you a fortune, but it will be the trip of a lifetime for you guys! Let me know if you want to do a candle fundraiser to earn some money for your trip! LOL We don't really mind the drive, but I can't quite imagine it with 8 kids in the car! Of course, if your parents are going, maybe you can split them up a bit.
I saw you mention pins, Check out the ones on E-bay, there are a ton of stuff on there, after we went to disneyland, we got the kids some stuffed animals from e-bay that were stocking stuffer size. and the girls got tinkerbell night gowns (new). Also, we had no clue about getting autographs from the charictors until we were eating breakfast at Goofy's kitchen, and my husband had to run to a hotel gift shop and buy four at $10 apiece! I think we could have found them cheaper before we went.
Crystal, I was going to mention the fundraising, but Heidi beat me to it! We are doing one for another mission trip. We're using the fundraiser with Dutch Mill Bulbs. We're going to start that in Feb., since they don't send the the bulbs to our area until March. It seems like a good return for your time and effort. My husband is very skeptical about fundraisers, so I'm glad we got him to assent to this one. I hope it works well, otherwise he won't let us do another one I'm sure! What a lot of great ideas on here! Maybe we'll used our fundraiser for Disneyland or Disney World too!
I never thought of doing a fundraiser for a personal trip. Do you think that is ok to do? That would be a good idea to help.
Crystal~ People buy stuff from fundraisers all the time. I have people do the Home & Garden candle fundraisers even to earn some extra spending money for themselves- like around Christmas time, etc. So, I don't see why you couldn't do it for a trip! I joked to Ashley that she would have to sell candles to earn her school books last year~ you know how the schools do fundraisers for stuff like that?! She loves to sell the candles, so she doesn't care! Send the kids out selling saying they're trying to earn a trip to Disney World and people will definitely buy from them! LOL
I have to agree with Heidi, people do, do it all the time. We had no trouble with our bake sale we had wonderful support. You need to look in on it. It's worth it. Gives the kids a little extra spending money and will be worth it. If you decide to do a candle fun raiser or something post on here we all might buy. Also, see if the company will ship right to customers so yo don't have to pay for shipping just a thought. Heidi, might know about the shipping part.
Great, then I will plan on doing some fundraising!!! When is the best time to go to Disney? We were planning April, but someone said that is high season. When is it cheapest and less crowds?
September or October is good but anytime you go check and make sure it isn't gay week. They do have one of those and from what I hear your kids will see way more than you probably want them too.
When we have gone these past 2 times~ the last week of February, that runs into March~ has been a great time! But, an even better time is January~ that's when I went the first 2 times and the place is practically empty. Like I said before, anytime that schools are in session, and it's not a 3-day weekend, or any bigger vacation (such as spring break, Easter, etc.) should be ok.
I agree with Heidi. Try and stay away from April unless you go the very end of April, because of Spring breaks and Easter.
Crystal~ Brian just reminded me today (we're planning our winter 2008 trip!) to tell you to stay away from mid-February~ like the week that has President's Day in it~ that's a peak time at Disney.
You're already planning an end of 2008 trip? WOW! I don't even know for sure what we're doing THIS summer!
No, Deena~ winter to me is January and February (December is just Christmas! LOL) so our 2008 trip will be the beginning of the year, not the end. We just plan from one Disney trip to the next, cause we love it so much! We are a big vacation family~ day trips, weekend trips, weeks and longer. For this year, we have several trips in the planning stages~ in May we (just Brian and I) will do an over-nighter with Crystal and Rod to the Homeschool Convention (it's a "vacation" in my mind because we get a night away! LOL) and the end of May we get a whole weekend away as a family in a B&B because my baby brother is getting married about 2 1/2 hours from home! In June, we will spend a week at the beach (OC,NJ). We have a 3-day, 2-night trip to Williamsburg to use sometime before the end of September (so we're thinking we'll wait 'til schools are back in session, and go then~ no crowds!) Brian is planning a racing weekend with some guys from church in August, and I have a friend who wants me to go on a girlfriends' cruise with her in November (not sure if that will work~ depends on finances!) Anyway, we love to travel, and I'm a big-time planner; so the plans are always there~ in the back of my mind (or sometimes, more towards the front! LOL)
Just got something in the mail today and thought of you! Here's what the little mailer says: "Introducing Disney Home School Days! Join us at Epcot in Florida for thrilling learning opportunities. With hands-on interactions and eye opening experiences around every corner, students are inspired to really soar. Disney Home School Days... way more than a field trip! 2006 Event Dates: Feb 21 & 22; May 25, 26 & 27; and Sept 18, 19 & 20. Call toll free 866-291-6605 to sign up today." That's pretty much all the info. the mailer gave but... May be too crowded for what you were thinking, but just thought I would pass this info. along!
I am a frequent Disney visitor. Being an RVer we get there several times per year. You have a lot of good advice already. I would be happy to give any advice at all. PM me or I'd be happy to send you my email. You should pick up the Birnbaum's Guide. Also there are a couple of Disney forums you can visit. The people at these forums know everything. Check out disneycentral.com or wdwmagic.com. Good Luck with the planning.
Whoa! How do you ever decide what kind of tickets to get when there are so many options?!!! I got lost looking on that Mousesavers site!
We have FL resident seasonal passes. These are great! Before that we had regular annual passes. They pay for themselves in 2 visits. We always stay at the RV park (Fort Wilderness) and this way (annual passes) we can go as often as we like. The Magic Your Way Tickets are quite flexible. You can add only the options you want and don't have to pay for options you don't need. I always recommend staying on WDW property if at all possible. Plus if you get a Magic Your Way package, it offers a dining plan that is very nice. Like I said, I am happy to answer any and all questions. You can e-mail me at timkelmom@yahoo.com or I will continue to post this way. Kim
