Duane

If we wanted to generate WDW planning spreadsheets, then we could have stayed single.....

Thank Goodness! I was just in serious withdrawl this weekend and your trip reports really help us get through the hard times!
Laura

I think without those bulkheads the wings would be in Bay Lake today.

It depends, one year it snowed on Christmas day!  Not usually the case but it is usually chilly, 50's during the day.  I live about 2 hours from MB and my grandparents retired there for 10 years.  There is always stuff to do and I enjoy the slower pace.

We did get to look at a Grey Hawk, they were very nice. Unfortunately the dealer for those in our area doesn't really make good deals. But if they get in something we like used we are still open to that. We have time so hopefully the perfect unit at the perfect price will come our way. Just gonna keep looking!

Another fellow DVC member here... We have been members for about 6 years now and have really enjoyed using it.
We purchased direct from Disney and Saratoga Springs is our "home resort" and like others have said, we have never had any issue with getting what we want from other resorts.
While the Fort is still my most favorite place to stay, we never use points to stay there. We always use the points exclusively to stay at DVC properties.
Before we purchased, I was always in the "camp" of time shares are a big waste of money and the whole high pressure sales tactics really turned me off. Well when the wife talked me into going to a DVC sales presentation on a Disney cruise we were on, I reluctantly obliged. Long story short, it was completely opposite than what I was used to. No high pressure sales pitch, none of this "if you don't buy now, the deal will be gone", they said we could go home and talk about it, then we could call and talk to them later on... So it was a pleasant experience.
The main reason we purchased was to have a place to stay at Disney during the winter months when my daughter, who was in year round school, was out on break. I don't like to get the camper out in the winter when the roads could turn nasty... So if we want to go down for a night, or a week, we could (if they had availability).
I know there are many on here who are "anti-DVC" at the Fort, which I am one of them also.... If Disney wants to have another DVC resort on Bay Lake, I think there is plenty of land for them to use between WL and the Fort without them bulldozing the current horse barn and laying down more concrete and asphalt near Pioneer Hall....
Most DVC folks are not snobs, but those who genuinely love coming to Disney for what it is....

I love this photo too!:

And, if you would all indulge me for just a moment, I would like to give my side of this story.
I, of course, knew that Dave, Christy and their family had adopted Anna earlier this year.
And, from that story, I knew that Anna had spent her life to that point in an orphanage.
In Russia.
From what little I know about these kinds of things, I know that we have no idea what that child had been through up to that point in her life.
I also know, that if Dave and Christy had not gone to the lengths they did to adopt Anna, she would probably spend the rest of her life in a not-so-nice institution in Russia.
So, when I finally got a chance to meet her, I expected her to be shy and withdrawn.
Boy, was I surprised.
This little girl was so open and outgoing that it totally surprised me.
As far as I know, she doesn't talk much, but when she saw me, she held out her arms wide open and had a giant smile on her face!
She didn't know me from Adam, but this girl apparently trusts and loves everybody.
That is a testament to Dave and his family.
And, boy can that little girl hug!
When I tried to give her back to Dave, she hugged me tighter.
She was obviously pulling Dave's chain.
He told her that he had to keep her, because he promised the Russian judge that he would.
She reluctantly let go of my neck and went back to Dad.
This little meeting had a big impact on me.
I don't think I will ever forget this.
I am a firm believer that it is in giving that we receive.
And, I have no doubt at all that Dave, Christy, and all of their wonderful daughters have been an unbelievable blessing to sweet little Anna, but she is even a bigger blessing to them.
I have to say, this was the highlight of my trip.
And maybe my year.
Dave, Christy and their girls are what folks in the South call good people!
TCD

We park our galvanized tow dolly in the overflow lot when we're at the Fort... I don't have an issue with parking it there. I do lock it up and get a parking pass from the front desk for it as long as its parked in the overflow.... The way I look at it, locks just keep the honest folk at bay. If a thief wants something, they are going to get it whatever the cost...