Friday, April 9, 2010

I've got a little list

"Sarah Bramer, you've just booked your trip to Disney World! What are you going to do next?"




HAHA, seriously? I mean, come on...this is me - absolutely my mother's daughter, my sister's sister, a Barber to the "nth degree".... I'M MAKING MY TO-DO LIST!!

I think perhaps literally the day we booked this trip, I started this list. However, that was January...the trip was months away and the list was not very thorough and not very daunting.
Now the trip is T minus 5 weeks and counting and some items on the list really need attention.

Ok, so here we go. The clever reader will observe that I have broken the "list at large" into smaller categorized lists. (insert nerd music here)

To-Do for the car ride:
  • make curtains - This is first on my car ride list because, well, I want to make curtains. When the girls and I were growing up, Nana and Bobo lived in Florida most of the year. I can clearly remember car trips in the mini-van to see them. My mother made curtains for all the back windows of the van. They were used to block out the lights from cars at night, to provide privacy for changing into pjs, and to give shade when the glaring sun was at it's peak. They were simple, grey, bulk fabric rectangles with velcro tabs but I remember when she "unveiled" them to us before one trip - we were so excited. (sure, go ahead, more nerd music) I doubt Luke and Megan will care much about the curtains, but I will.
  • pack activity boxes - Another stroke of Ma P genius came in the form of activity boxes. See back in the day, the bench seats in a mini-van were high enough to slide things under. Not so, in my trusty Saturn VUE. Mom had purchased containers from a Tupperware Party (again, back in the day) and filled them with things to occupy little hands and minds. One held paper, activity books, colored pencils, crayons and stickers. Another held small travel versions of games we liked, decks of cards and books. These boxes, like the curtains, stick out in my mind as highlights to the car trip. I'm going to have to get a little creative with my "boxes", since space in the VUE is already at a premium, but I'm looking forward to the challenge.
  • map out a route - This task I may give to Joel. Then it can be his fault...ahahah! Just kidding! HAHA...aaaahhhaaa...heh....ha...hrmmmm.
  • plan and pack snacks - Helllloooo...we're Bramers. We snack.
  • pack DVD player and choose most non-annoying movies possible
  • bring our CD library of Adventures in Odyssey
  • CHARGE iPOD
  • have the car serviced and cleaned
  • find the roof rack luggage holder

To-do for the kids:

  • go through summer clothes
  • select clothing to pack
  • get/find hats that fit
  • get haircuts!
  • where are those new sneakers I ordered?
  • notify day care and Elementary school of vacation dates
  • get work that Luke will be missing
  • get money out of savings accts that Grandma has given them especially for this trip

To-do for when we arrive:

  • make sure camera has batteries, extra batteries and back up batteries
  • get park maps
  • remember to bring confirmation number
  • get sunblock, bug spray, hand sanitizer, wet wipes
  • clean out over-the-door shoe organizer and pack for hotel bathroom - This is a tip that Joel read in a Disney planning book. It makes sense. Upper compartments can hold toiletries - keeping them off the counter - and lower compartments can hold shoes and socks - keeping them off the floor. WIN WIN.

To-do for me:

  • color hair - Haha, you're getting the nitty gritty list here gang!
  • get haircut!
  • where are those new sneakers I ordered?
  • go to bank - duh.
  • go through summer clothes - *shudder*
  • get a massage - Joel's idea...one I am seriously considering.
  • pack laptop for uploading photos and blogging
  • GET A NEW PHONE - Long story, but this has to get done, like soon.
  • unplug everything from upstairs and living room before we leave
  • get someone to feed Gracie Cat - I think my mom will do this actually
  • reflect on the following: There will be lines. There will be crowds. The kids will get hyper. The kids will get tired. Things will be expensive. It might be uncomfortably hot. It might rain. The drive will be LONG. (doing this will help me because I tend to have very high expectations - perhaps that will be it's own blog entry before we leave)

Ahh, I feel better already. Obviously some of these things are stil weeks off, but it helps my logical, organized, Libra brain to make a list. Or several.

(Joel's name is a link to his blog, where he will be pre trip blogging too.)

3 comments:

  1. I remember those curtains and those gray boxes SO WELL! I can still remember that the curtains had lines on them...and those boxes had old paper from dad's office that had watermarks in the middle, so all of our drawings had a strange symbol appear when we colored over it. So cute! You are going to be super ready and have such a blast!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I forgot about the watermarks until I read that! So funny.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh, Sarah--
    You and I are so different! If I had to do all that planning and work before a trip, I'd never go anywhere!! Fortunately, my husband loves to plan trips, so I've had the best of both worlds!
    I've always been very disorganized, so one strategy I learned long ago was to make friends with organized people and let them do for me what they love to do best!
    Your trip will be awesome.

    ReplyDelete