Time for an update.

18 days until our spring getaway! Our dining reservations are set (until the next time I play around with them, which will probably be in, oh, another five minutes?), the basic plan is laid out (we’ll see if we stick with it; a recent analysis of our October, 2010 trip showed that we stuck to our plan from dawn-to-dusk on only four of our nine days. Still thinking about what that means.),  and soon I can start pondering our packing list and debating the merits of online check-in. It’s been a long couple of months at work, and this lackluster spring isn’t making things any easier. This vacation is well-timed.

In other news, the nerds will again be visiting Disney with an entourage – our next trip (after our next trip) is 228 days away and counting! This December I will finally get to experience my childhood dream of seeing this:

Cinderella Castle at Christmastime. Swoon!

I don’t know what it is about the potential of seeing fake snow in Florida, but the idea of Christmastime in Disney gets me a little giddy in a way that I am loathe to admit to anyone over the age of, say, 10. I can’t help it. I’ve wanted to see it for years, and now it looks like (knock wood) I’ll have my chance.

The plans are still a bit unformed – it will be CP and my grandparents at the very least. Perhaps my aunt and cousin(s) will also join? We will be staying in a DVC villa on my grandparents’ points; we’ll find out tomorrow what is available. Hopefully it will be a two-bedroom villa with three bathrooms (especially if our travel party includes four women again), so that would make Kidani Village at the Animal Kingdom Lodge and Bay Lake Tower at the Contemporary Resort the two best options. The former costs significantly fewer points than the latter, so that’s where I’m putting my money. Either option – or something else entirely – would be lovely. How can you resist this?

The Animal Kingdom Lodge, decorated for Christmas. (c) AllEars.net

In any case, it will be early December with family  in WDW. I can’t wait.

On tap this week: some pre-trip thoughts before our imminent spring trip, and a comprehensive review of our October Food and Wine Festival- Animal Kingdom Lodge-Incredible 10-Day Extravaganza Trip ™.