This trip has been on the to-do list for years. I wanted to see how the various central Florida theme parks did Christmas. But, between school schedules and family schedules, nothing quite jived. I did get to spend a crazy day bouncing around Disney checking out decorations a few years ago, on a trip to visit my grandparents at Christmas time. I ALMOST got to see some of the other parks last year, but that trip got canceled (which led to my weekend getaway in April 2014 to WDW, because I had an airfare credit that needed using).
So, this year, my school district was kind enough to give us two full weeks off for Christmas break, because of the timing of the holidays. But my family (including mom who works in a different school district), didn’t have free time until RIGHT before Christmas. Since there would be no family obligations, and I had the time, and I had looked at the calendar and (rightly) figured that it would be a long time before I had another opportunity like this, I went ahead and booked a trip to Florida for December 20-24. As soon as the trip was booked, I set about trying to figure out how to cram as many holiday festivities into one trip as possible. It would be a solo trip, so I could do exactly what I wanted.
The trip was booked in May, the day that Southwest tickets went on sale for Christmas, so I had months to plan. I also moved out of my mom’s house and in with my boyfriend during that time. Admittedly, given the new, greater expenses of not living at home, I started to question my decision to go on this trip, but, the more I thought about it, the more convinced I was that this trip needed to be taken. I was especially convinced when my Magic Band arrived during our 5 day power outage that we endured over Thanksgiving weekend thanks to snow. Yeah, a trip to Florida was exactly what I needed.
The plans got made, and revised as time went on. I think the only thing that really remained consistent was the hotels I was staying at. I was going to be hopping around a lot, to maximize hotel benefits, and also to keep some rewards accounts active. The plan was for me to stay at Art of Animation at Disney 12/20. Then I would move to the Hilton Garden Inn at Sea World from 12/21-12/23. My last night would be at the Drury Inn and Suites, which is kind of near Universal. That one was to keep my rewards account active.
Eventually, the week before Christmas arrived, and I hurried to finish my holiday preparations. The cookies got made, the presents got wrapped, and the suitcase was packed. Believe it or not, my suitcase was packed TWO nights before departure. Since the forecast was for highs of 75 at the warmest (with some days in the upper 60s), I only packed capris and t-shirts. I didn’t think I’d need shorts on this trip.
Friday 12/19 was a crazy day at work, as we went through our holiday routine of craft stations and caroling at the elementary school. It really makes for a nice day, but it also makes for a tiring day. After work, I went home, had dinner with Nick, and then he drove me to my mom’s house. Nick and I live about 40 minutes from Manchester airport. Mom lives 10-15 minutes from the airport. With a very early morning flight, it was a no-brainer for me to stay with her. Since I’d be flying in midday on Christmas Eve, Nick would be able to pick me up at the airport, so there was no reason for me to leave my car at mom’s.
Once at mom’s we chatted for quite awhile before Nick headed home. While chatting, I couldn’t help but notice that swallowing was getting more difficult. I convinced myself that it was just from too much talking and singing with the kiddos at work, and went to bed, excited for my trip.
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