Roberta

Wow, this thread is really confusing me with all the acronyms and numbers!

My Jeep has a factory tow package that says I can tow up to 5,000 lbs. I don't know what acronym that is .. just says it can tow up to that.

Now, after reading this, I'm wondering if i should be towing anything all. :-[

My Jeep weighs 3,574. My trailer weighs 1,520 (dry). I'm over 5,000 before even adding people and junk.

Do they not do this anymore or am I misunderstanding?? I will be really sad if this feature is gone. It was my favorite part of the ride as a child.

Very cool pics!!

We have a black snake about that size that hangs out along the edge of our property. I'm always happy to see him because he keeps the mice from the neighboring property away. I hope if a rattler ever comes around, our big blackie eats it!!

I'd never kill a non-poisonous snake unless I couldn't identify it as such before it got away. We had either a coral or king snake come in the yard a couple of years ago. I forgot what the color combo of the good one was so I tried to kill it but it got away before I could get a weapon. It still haunts me.

I blindly Googled "Fort Wilderness Forum"

Absolutely gorgeous! I'd be so excited that I'd be living in it! I was so excited with my little 15 year old pop-up that I did mostly live in it for the first month. :parrot:

I'm getting the sense that MountainMama isn't too happy with Disney about this.

:argh:

I had hoped the subject never came up. You guys found one of my pet peeves. I shouldn't have even clicked on the thread. :-X

We're going to start buying our yearly passes again next year so will spending more time at Disney. The Fort is likely the only place we'll be staying when we go for more than a day trip and there we have our own fridge full of drinks. I won't take my forever mugs ( I haven't taken them since about '04) but not buying new ones. I would seriously rather lick the sweat from my body than participate in the Disney Mug Scam. :rofl2:

Not saying it isn't worth it since Royal Caribben charged $50 for a mug for one week, but I'm way too annoyed over this thing.

my question is why go through so much trouble to try and save money on soda.. don't ya think they could find another place to get more money out of the people who already spent thousands to visit them! :argh:

I agree and to me it's more about princliple than cost. Our mugs do have a specific resort on them - Port Orleans Riverside - but at the time we purchased them it was very clearly stated that we would be able to use these mugs forever regardless of which resort we were staying. This was in writing and the main reason I decided to invest in them. We stay at different resorts every time we go.

We had never bought the mugs in earlier years because our kids were young and we didn't let them drink soda anyway. At the time we decided to buy them (2000?) they were under $10. We used them for quite a few years so we have gotten our money's worth. But, once again, it's not about the money. It's breach of contract and I feel Disney should go public with their intent to honor forever mug sales. I have been going to DW since they opened (with my parents then, of course) and have spent countless thousands of dollars there.

I know it sounds petty, but this stupid mug thing has kept me away for the last few years. I will not buy new mugs until they quit disrespecting us old timers.

We have forever mugs from 10 or 11 years ago. I always washed them and packed them away for our next trip so they are in new looking condition. Even so, I doubt we will bring them back on our future trips with all this going on. I don't want people looking at us like we're thieves. It really stinks because we have taken good care of them all these years so we could use them forever - and at any resort - which was what rule at that time. I'm really annoyed at Disney with this whole mug thing. Changing the rules is punishing us long time fans. Even though we can technically hold them to their agreement, we risk being harassed, embarrassed, and potentially run down by an angry mob of haters.<BR> <BR><BR>Edited to add: Royal Carribean does not use any kind of "chip" system. We recently spent a week on Freedom of the Seas and all they did is put a little Coke sticker on your key card. You can't get your own fountain drink, you have to have the people behind the counters do it and show your card w/sticker if they ask.

Sorry it took me so long to reply. I just noticed your question.

It's less than 5 miles off I-75. I'm not great judging distances but I would guess 3-5 miles. It's not very far at all but a whole different world. Even if you're just spending one night, it's very nice with nice, shady sites. Very peaceful.

YES!!!!!! This is like my dream show! I can't wait to see it!

It's absolutely beautiful! I've never camped there since we live 15 minutes away, but have been there many times. Lots to do and see in the park, they often have programs and things going on. I would highly recommend it.

I'm so sorry to hear about your situation. You are right, that sales woman had no right to tell you it would likely be sooner when she really had no idea. As bad as she wanted the commission, she still should have done the right thing and not be responsible for ruining a family's vacation. That's just disgusting.

I really hope some miracle happens and your unit is ready in the next week. Have they been able to give you any information about where it is in production or even if it's been started?

I'll relate this story to anyone I know considering a deal with RV Direct.

But because her disabilities are not obvious, and not well understood, we have trouble with our parents and others regarding some of the decisions we make for her, or how we handle her at times.

Thanks for your support! You hit the nail on the head here, I've dealt with that all my son's life.

My ears are the 6 inch globes!!

That's not paint on my camper it is vinyl and yes, I did it myself. I did paint the plastic trim. It was red, and then I bought a roll of blue vinyl online and cut the ears and the lettering on the front.

Our own AuburnJen cut the Musket Mickey for me.

Glad your globes are 6" since they looked perfect size in the picture. It was so hard for me to judge looking at mine in person, I think I'm too close.

That's really cool about your camper! Absolutely genius to cut them from vinyl. I did a search for Disney vinyl decals and came up empty so assumed you had painted them on. I need to learn to think outside the box.

I'm still trying to decide how to cut my ear holes. I have a 2.5" hole saw that I may use and try to sand the rest of the way to the circle. My dremel recently died.

I've got a color changing bulb. It looks pretty cool.

What size globes are your ears?

Going a bit off topic here, but did you paint your camper yourself? It's awesome looking!

you have a support system here :) welcome to FF

:heart: Thank you, that means a lot to me.

Got the pole painted today!!!

:D Sweet! I wish I was that far along in the process. I just bought supplies today for my first Mickey Pole lamp. My local Home Depot had all the parts on hand so I didn't have to special order anything. Good thing since I'm not very patient! I bought the 6" globes as I like the proportions of all the ones I've seen pictures of. They did have 8" globes in stock so it was a bit of a dilemma before I decided to go with the ones I've seen.

I'm thinking of ordering this color changing bulb for mine.

As a life-long tent camper (until 2 months ago), I have some things to add. It would be cool if someone made a Google doc to keep track of everyone's suggestions. Much easier than going through all the posts when this thread gets long. I would start it but I don't know how.

I second the fan and power-strip.

A mallet for tent stakes & air mattress repair kit are musts.

In colder months, electric blankets are nice since air mattresses are very cold! Putting the electric blanket under the mattress or under your body works best.

Since most tenters eat outside, a tablecoth for the picnic table and those little net food tents to keep the bugs off edibles.

Flashlights.

Cooler tips:

Buy quality and larger than you think you'll need - leaves more room for ice.

Freeze water in gallon ziploc bags or larger containers before you leave - lasts way longer than cubes.

Bring the cooler inside a couple days in advance so that it's not hot from storage.

Put some large ice blocks in the cooler the night before trip to cool it down. Remove and put new ice with food before you leave.

Freeze everything possible before putting in cooler.

Keep a seperate cooler for drinks so your perishable foods cooler will get opened less.

Never put unchilled drinks in cooler if you can help it.

Congrats, that's a great looking camper! I guess by now you've already had some good times in it.

Wow, that is a gi-normous tent!! We camped for years in a 10'x16' cabin tent that everyone thought was huge. It doesn't compare to that one.

I love that the common area is in the center, making it easy to put in an electric heater or portable AC that everyone will get equal benefit of. You could really set up a table and chairs in the center for a dining area also.

I wouldn't worry to much about the windows. In all our years of tent camping, I rarely opened ours. The only time I wanted to open them is when it was raining and I couldn't. It appears yours have awnings and would be okay open in rain.

So have you camped in it yet? I haven't explored the whole board so this question may be answered elsewhere.

Thanks so much for the welcomes! Soon I will head over to the intro board and make a real introduction.

I am from WV ;D , that was a good guess considering there are many other mountains around. We moved down south four years ago and now live only 90 minutes from DW! We just got a new-to-us camper and hope to make a trip to the fort soon.

I do have the support of my parents now. Over the last few years they have finally come to accept that my son is disabled, not spoiled. I completely forgive them and we have a great relationship now. My husband is still in denial. My grown daughters are my best friends and offer lots of moral support. Most of all, I rely on God to guide us because I sure don't know what to do on my own.

I've noticed most of the parents on this board are still dealing with younger children. It gives me a great feeling to see these kids getting diagnosed and helped at early ages. And for the parents, being able to connect with other parents of disabled children is priceless!

Hello everyone! Who would have thought that my first post on a Disney forum would be about autism ... go figure.

My almost 22 year old son has Asperger's. He wasn't diagnosed until age 19. When he was little there was no internet and I had no way of knowing there were other kids out there like him. It would have HUGE difference in all of our lives had I had all the information then that I do now.

He had all the classic symptoms mentioned in this thread. He would only eat certain foods, loud/different noises or crowds sent him into a meltdown, he wouldn't wear clothes at home and only tag-free loose, soft clothing other times. He never understood body language, figures of speech, and had no social skills. Breaks in routine or anything out of the ordinary would cause crying and trantrums. He was in special ed but nobody ever really knew what was wrong with him. It helped due to the small class size and very specific directions on how to do things.

All his growing up years everyone just thought he was a spoiled brat (my parents included even though they didn't say it like that.) Nevermind that I had three other kids - two older and one younger - being raised by the same people in the same household that were perfectly normal and well behaved. I never knew what to do or how to handle things and I'm sure I made many mistakes. I had zero support system. Even my husband was unavailable (emotionally) and in denial.

So now, my son is nearly 22, he has his GED and is taking online classes. He went to actual college for a year but could not handle it. He has never been able to learn to drive. He's never had any kind of therapy or treatment since he was never diagnosed until he was an adult. Our insurance will not cover him and he can't get medicaid. We've tried to get disability for him with no success after many appeals. He has applied for many jobs but once there is an interview it's over. Everyone on earth, except social security, can see he is different and write him off.

It's really heart breaking. He gets depressed because he has no friends and is here at home all the time. He sees others, including his younger brother, moving on with their lives and he is just kind of stuck. I really don't know how to help him other than paying for his online classes so he has SOMETHING to strive for. As bad as things were when he was little, it was much better than where we are now.

So, I hope to get to know some of you on the forum. I have lots to talk about with camping and Disney. I've never stayed at FW, only the motels, but I've always wanted to and will someday soon, God willing.