Williams Family: Retirement Job #1

Retirement, schmirement!  For the first time in a long time, I can try new jobs, roles, experiences, like Jennifer Lopez' character in 'Monster-in-Law' without worry of "losing the farm" so to speak.  And, as a friend said, "Build my resume for Disney."

On day two of retirement, I applied for three part-time, non-IPERS employer, jobs.  Two applications were online. The third application required an in-person pick-up and I decided to complete the application right there and had a brief interview when submitting the application.  

By the end of the day, I had an email exchange for one of the online applications to set up a time for a phone interview the next day.  The phone interview seemed to go well, and I was told that an in-person interview would be next but there would be a week's delay due to a vacation. 

On the fourth day of retirement, I had a call with an offer of employment. "Yes", was my reply.  

Retirement job #1 is being a member of the grounds crew at a local golf course.  It means reporting early in the morning, learning the course, golf terms, and learning how to operate a zero-turn mower. 

The benefits: outside, beautiful scenery, can wear earplugs or earbuds to listen to music or books, early start on the day, and very friendly people! Even a few familiar faces!  The stress is minimal--not running out of gas and keeping the line are the biggest worries. That and being mindful of golfers!   

Why do I want to work?  Trying new things is at the top of the list.  Then there's keeping busy.  Pay is nice. I can make up for some rewards, bonuses, and incentives that I wasn't eligible or didn't qualify for. 

There has been no response to the third application, submitted online.  

Stay-tuned!

Anticipation, Another Holiday Season, And New-To-Us Experiences

We're getting set for the adventure of yet another Walt Disney World vacation.  It's our third Christmas at Walt Disney World, but definitely, not our first time traveling during the winter holidays.  Traveling at that time of year is something we have never regretted. . . it's all about anticipation and memories!

Often, I am asked about why we travel during the winter holidays.  My first response is that we can.  All three of us do not have school or work.  The other reason is I want to avoid that "let down" feeling after the presents are opened, after days, even weeks of build up and we're looking a pile of wrapping paper and a kitchen full of dishes.  Our first Christmas day spent at Magic Kingdom, I looked at the husband and said, "I haven't had that let down feeling yet."  And, I didn't. . . the entire trip.  We know our fun means that others may be missing time with family and friends and we make sure to thank them regularly.

Our 10-night stay at Pop Century this year allowed us to schedule some special tours and events: Up Close With Rhinos at Disney's Animal Kingdom, Yuletide Fantasy Tour which begins and ends at EPCOT, and UnDiscovered Future World which is also at EPCOT.

Last holiday season we took the Behind the Seeds Tour.

We're also trying four new restaurants:  California Grill located on the top floor of The Contemporary Resort, Storybook Dining at Artist Point located in Disney's Wilderness Lodge, San Angel Inn which is inside the Mexico Pavilion at EPCOT--you know the one that overlooks the volcano and is perpetually nighttime, and Enzo's Hideaway at Disney Springs.  We had a reservation for Enzo's when we first started planning our trip, then cancelled it and have made another reservation, but on a different day than originally planned.  While all of them are new and exciting to us, we are definitely looking forward to California Grill.  Our reservation is for 6:00 pm on Dec. 30, which sounds like a regular reservation.  Disney enthusiasts know that the Magic Kingdom has 4 sets of New Year's Eve fireworks.  Two on Dec. 30 and two on Dec. 31.  The first blasts are scheduled for 6:30 pm on December 30.  We'll be watching the fireworks at California Grill!  Have you ever seen fireworks that explode into the shape of a number? We have!  And, it's the "countdown" fireworks at Magic Kingdom. . . 10, 9. 8, etc.

Williams Families Dec. 2017

Something else that is new-to-us this trip, is planning with another family--a Williams Family!  We've had our MyDisneyExperience accounts linked since the summer and have discovered the trips, traps, and joys of co-planning a Walt Disney World vacation.  Our plans include Christmas Eve lunch, Candlelight Procession, and dinner, and Christmas Day lunch.

Two Williams Families--are we related?  No.  Friends who enjoy Disney, who are parenting boys, and have Todds!  Our December 2018 trip isn't the first time our visits at Disney have overlapped, but this time we're more purposeful.

With Fastpasses selected and dining reservations made all we have to do now is wait and enjoy the anticipation.  Well, pack and wait!

Summer 2015 Disneyland Character Meet and Greet Plans

Anticipation for our upcoming Summer 2015 Williams Family Vacation continues to grow.  The husband has put his fingers on the character happenings at Disneyland and has already put together his wish list!

Oswald the Lucky Rabbit is advertised as greeting guest at Disney California Adventure.  This would be a new to us character and the husband is destined to make this meet and greet.

Both the husband and the boy have designs on introducing themselves to Captain American, greeting guests in Disneyland, and Thor, the Mighty Avenger.

I’ve got my eye out for an Olaf meet and greet at Disney California Adventure.  His friends, Anna and Elsa, are there too.  Interestingly, all FROZEN activities—character meet and greets, or the First Time In Forever FROZEN Sing-a-long—require FastPass (which is still the paper system).

Any other characters will be icing on an already sweet vacation cake.  Although the husband has  stated that if the Big Bad Wolf is anywhere near, we’re going to “DEFCON 10” as he puts it and stopping all plans in their tracks.  He has his priorities.

Getting character autographs on a pillow case during our Summer 2014 Walt Disney World vacation

Speaking of character meetings, we have a new white pillow-case ready to capture character autographs using fabric markers just for the occasion. (Wal-Mart had a package of 2 micro-fiber pillow cases for less than $5.)

P.S.  There are also character meet and greets at Legoland, including Character Dining!

New Experiences Planned for Our Upcoming Trip

“Haven’t you done everything yet?” people ask when they learn we are returning to Walt Disney World for the 12^th time as a family and embarking on our 6^th Disney Cruise.  Our answer, NO!  We haven’t done everything yet.  And, part of planning a trip—the fun as well as challenging—is balancing the favorite and familiar with new experiences.  It is this balance that makes returning even more exciting.

So, with that, I’ll share the new experiences we have planned for our upcoming vacation:

• Dining at Via Napoli in the Italy Pavilion at EPCOT.  We continue on our quest to “eat around the World”—World Showcase that is and this will be our first time dining in Italy.  Only Mexico is left!
• FastPass+.  This will be our first time using and navigating FastPass+.  Just when we thought we had FastPass figured out, even with the enforcement of return times, Disney goes and changes the system.  I am excited to give it a try.
• MagicBands.  Ours are packed and ready (we won’t need them until we get off the ship).  I already know that I will have a hard time taking it off when we get home.  Do I have to?
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train Coaster.  Enough said!
• All the FROZEN inspired opportunities.  While we don’t have these specifically put into our plan, I have a feeling we will at least see the fireworks at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. 
• Experiencing the champagne brunch at Remy on the Disney Fantasy.  The husband and I will surely enjoy this decadent experience.
• The Rainforest Room on the Disney Fantasy.  Our one-day passes will allow us to experience and explore.  Just get me to the heated benches overlooking the ocean so my body can melt.
• The Disney Fantasy!  This is our first time onboard this particular Disney ship and we are looking forward to exploring.
• Pirates League on the Disney Fantasy.  The boy has a reservation for a First Mate Make-over on Pirate Night.  What a treat!
• Universal’s Express Plus and Photo Connect.  While we have been to Universal Orlando before, this will be our first time using the Express Plus Pass as well as Photo Connect.  Curious to see how these work out for us.

There you have it—our list of new experiences planned for our trip.  And, there may be new experiences that aren’t planned as we stay open to the magic that is Disney.

Tomorrow—the list of familiar favorites!

"New" Experiences for Summer 2013 Trip to Walt Disney World

“Haven’t you already done everything?” was a question posed by some well meaning non-Disney folks when they heard we were returning to the most magical place on earth yet again.  Our reply, “No!”  Alas, the expansive Walt Disney World Resort still has some parts our family has yet to see and experience.  But, with each trip comes an opportunity to try something new in combination with tried and true favorites.  Here is our list of new experiences we are looking forward to for our next trip to Walt Disney World:

Photopass +.  As long time fans of Disney’s Photopass service, we are now venturing into a new offering which is Photopass +.  The “+” part includes dining photos at select locations and ride photos for those rides offering photos, such as Splash Mountain.  We pre-paid for Photopass + through our travel agent and a voucher came with our documents.  The plan is to exchange the voucher for the lanyard, etc. at EPCOT’s Photopass store.

Spirit of Aloha Dinner at the Poly.  Booked for our anniversary, this luau themed dinner show rounds out our dinner show experiences at Walt Disney World.  After this, we will be able to declare a favorite.  This is a pay-in-advance experience and our tickets are waiting to be picked up at our resort.

Reserved viewing for Wishes.  This AAA Member benefit had eluded us for our last 2 trips.  I am curious to see how this works.  Expect a full report upon our return.  And, oh, I am also looking forward to Wishes.  Our family certainly enjoyed our local 4^th of July fireworks display, but after you’ve experienced Disney fireworks, nothing quite compares.  We’ve been spoiled to say the least.

Nine Dragons at the China Pavilion in EPCOT.  Slowly we are ticking off nations around World Showcase Lagoon as we attempt to eat around the world.  It will have taken us 11 trips to make it to China.  The husband is really looking forward to this ADR.  We will be eating across Asia this day as lunch is at Nine Dragons and dinner at Teppan Edo.  It will be a great day!

The Plaza Restaurant.  Our new dining experiences theme continues with a trip to The Plaza Restaurant in Magic Kingdom.  Looking forward to the experience and of course, writing a post.  Oh, what we do for our readers!

Be Our Guest.  Eating at this new restaurant in the Magic Kingdom was the boy's request as soon as he knew we were going to Walt Disney World.  When we attempted to get an ADR for dinner, it was at 8:30 pm, not ideal for our family.  We held onto the reservation anyway.  Then, when our travel agent called to check on something else for us, she double checked Be Our Guest and sure enough, a 5:30 ADR had opened up.  We will be dining her on our last evening in the parks.

Rainforest Café.  While technically not new, as we have previously dined at a Rainforest Café, it was not on Disney property.  Our day at Animal Kingdom will be topped off by a visit to Rainforest Café.  The husband has already checked out the menu on-line. 

Blizzard Beach.  Our family loves swimming pools and water parks.  We are looking forward to spending some time at both Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon.  We’ve made two previous trips to Typhoon Lagoon, but this year, the boy is going on Crushin’ Gusher!

Disney Quest.  This 5 story indoor arcade at Downtown Disney’s West Side has been researched the most for our upcoming trip.  The boy has already figured out there is the Fix It Felix game from Wreck-It Ralph.  I’m betting we lose track of time.  But not so much that we miss our ADR at Rose & Crown for some Illuminations viewing.

Wow, that is a long list of new things.  Combine it with all the other items on our agenda and no wonder we haven’t seen it all or done it all, even after so many trips.  Oh, well, we’ll just have to go back!