It might sound crazy....but it's true!

Ever since Kevin and I were at WDW in January without the kids we've been talking about how much we want to go back. With the kids this time, of course. :)

We looked at this discount offer, and we received two PIN codes for free 'quick service' dining, and then we received THE email - an offer from Disney Rewards® Visa® where the kids would be TOTALLY FREE (free dining, free park tickets .... F-R-E-E).

And let me tell you, it doesn't get much better than FREE.

So, last weekend on a whim, we priced out the different offers (free dining v. free kids) and decided to go with the Disney Visa offer. (A value resort + a 5 day base ticket + quick service dining = we can do this!)

Yes, you read that right.

WE. ARE. GOING. TO. DISNEY WORLD!

Next month.

What???????????????

Yeah, that's right. Me, the ultimate I-must-start-planning-a-year-in-advance, has a mere 30-some days in which to plan our family vacation.

Oh. My. Gosh.

I might go insane.

Granted, I don't have to worry about making an Advance Dining Reservations (ADRs) because we are using the Quick Service Dining Plan for the first time ever! I'm excited about this change of pace - we don't have to plan our days around dining reservations and we get to experience some new quick service dining options. (And really, with 2 quick service meals and 2 snacks per person per day .... we'll have more than enough food! That's 8 meals and 8 snacks a day. Holy food.)

But, I am the Planning Queen....so I have been picking out what quick service restaurants we'll be visiting -- and yes, we are going to have those planned out in advance. I do not want to be wandering through the Magic Kingdom debating Casey's Corner or Pecos Bills for lunch. (For the record, we'll be eating at both locations!).

Another difference for this trip - we are not getting the Park Hopper option - so we will only be visiting ONE park per day. I haven't done this since I was a child and we would only go for one day. (Well, OK...there was the one-day trip we took when Olivia was 2, but ....). So we decided we'll do two day at the Magic Kingdom (because it's our favorite park), one day at Disney's Hollywood Studios and Epcot and a half day (our last day in Orlando) at Animal Kingdom.

I'm very excited about this "new" adventure in the parks - I think we're going to feel less rushed and have more time to see and do all that the kids want to see and do!

Speaking of my princesses, let me just tell you how EXCITED they were when we told them about the trip. How did we tell them? Well, for some reason (um, probably because they are official Neurotic Disney Kids) they were talking about how they "needed" to go to Disney World. And, I just 'happened' to have the 2010 Disney Vacation Planning DVD on hand. So, we put the DVD in and when it started I said "what do you guys think about a Disney vacation?" and well...let's say there was a lot of jumping up and down and screaming "yes!yes!yes!!!!"

And so, the suitcases are out and in the process of being packed.
The lists are being made.
And the countdown is ON!

Walt Disney World -- here we come!


(Of course, you can count on a lot of blog posts about the trip once we're home and unpacked. I'm quite certain I will have many more planning tips for you, my dear readers!)