mommywissa

We are going to Holiday World this weekend and already have reservations at a hotel, but it didn't get great reviews. I would love some recommendations for places to stay with our family of 5. (2 adults kids 10,8,7) Any tips on how to get the most out of our visit would be greatly appreciated as well!

Our family is going to Disney World on May 28th. We will be on the Disney Dining plan (since it's free). Our family is myself and my husband, 9 year old daughter and sons 7 and 6. Our kids are very picky eaters. We were just there again in August but we didn't do the dining plan. For this trip we are definitely doing O'Hana, Coral Reef, Whispering Canyon Cafe (our three favorite restaurants). We can't decide where else to go for our last two credits. We detest Chef Mickey's and the only other bad experience we had was at Hollywood and Vine. Can't decide if California Grill would be a good option or not. Also wondering about Boma. Help! Please! Our 180 mark is quickly approaching!

We are going to Orlando in August and while we are staying at Disney World, we are planning to spend one day (maybe two) at Harry Potter World. We don't want to see anything else at Universal. Where is the best place to get tickets? We have a AAA membership and can get them through there, but just wanted to double check.

We are debating letting our children watch James Cameron's movie Titanic since we have season tickets to the local live theater and the musical Titanic is coming. We'd like them to see the movie before the musical, but are concerned about the profanity. We know of the adult scenes that we will have to skip, but it's harder to skip repeated profanity, so we are looking to see exactly which obscenities are used before viewing it with our children.

We are planning on a trip to Universal (a day trip during our Disney World vacation). My three kids are Potter fanatics, but I am starting to worry that they may be too short to ride the rides. My kids are 8,6, and 5. And have read all 7 books. I don't want to break the hearts and not have them be able to ride! Anyone have an idea?

My five year old little boy is in love with Cinderella. He asked her to marry him the last time we were there and is ready to try his luck again! We are planning to eat again at the castle, but didn't know if the same actress would be portraying Cinderella at Park Faire. He would be devastated if he found out it wasn't the same girl. Anyone know the answer or where I can find out? We will be in Disney World from August 1st- August 9th.... Thanks!

So I can't figure out which one of these Garmin to get! We have an older version 365? that we bought in 2008 and love it, but the maps are outdated and instead of buying new maps, we thought we'd just get a new system. Amazon has the 265WT on sale for 169.00 and the 285WT at 138.70. I can't even figure out the differences. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I want to stick with Garmin, but am open to different models for around $150. Thanks!

We are planning a family vacation to Orlando in late July/early August. Our main objective is to go to Disney World, but my 8 year old daughter is very excited about Harry Potter World opening in Orlando? Is it worth it to stay on property to avoid the lines? We were at Disney last year, so know what to expect there, but have never been to Universal. Our kids are 8, 6, and 5. Is there a lot for them to do? Any information would be helpful!

I know they are participating in the no state sales tax, but I wasn't sure if they are having no city tax as well for school supplies. We are going to the Walmart in Eureka around midnight because I am just that cheap and dorky!

My husband's family is all in Chicago and as the relatives get older, we seem to be making more and more road trips up there. O'Hare is pretty centrally located to his family, so we are looking for a hotel near O'Hare that has a good view of the runways/ planes for our kiddos (7,5, and 4 years old.) The hotel has to have an indoor pool as well. We are always on a budget- so price is important. Can't wait to hear your feedback!

My seven year old little girl loves to have curly hair. I have no idea how to curl hair since my hair is already too curly. She wants Shirley Temple curls, but I can't get them to hold. We use a curling iron and by the time I am to the other side of her head the first curls have fallen out. We even went to one of the chain haircut places to have her hair curled for a dance recital and the curls all fell out before we got home 10 minutes later. Any suggestions will be helpful. I am totally inept at hair!

So my husband went out to his car this afternoon to cool off and when he started it- he described the sound as the engine being filled with rocks. It is a 2000 Toyota Camry with 120,xxx miles. He was out of work for 6 weeks, so we absolutely cannot afford a new car. My stepbrother is a mechanic with Toyota, so I know he can fix it for us much more reasonably than the dealer- but I am just trying to get an estimate as to what could be wrong- so I can stop hyperventilating!

All my little girl wants for her 8th birthday is to fly to Chicago and go to the American Girl store. Since price is pretty comparable flying into O'Hare and Midway, I am trying to figure out which is easiest. I would prefer not to take a cab because of the expense, so what would be the best way to get from either airport to the American Girl store and back to the airport? We would be flying in around 9am on Aug. 22nd and flying back out about 8pm that same evening. Please keep in mind I will have my daughter and my mother who uses a walker. Any suggestions?

My son woke up again with croup this morning. We usually give him oripred (sp?) for it, but we are all out. I have several inhalation solutions, but I don't know which one is a steroid. Any suggestions?

We are leaving on vacation next week and since we never fly we have no idea where to leave our minivan. We are looking for something cheap since we will be gone 8 days and something that has frequent shuttle service to the airport. It doesn't really matter how far from the airport it is.

We are going to Paris from July 15-22nd. We want to do a romantic dinner cruise on the Seine but are on a tight budget. Neither one of us drink alcohol, so the wine list is of little importance. Any suggestions? Should I book before we leave or once we get there?

I really enjoy reading Dean Koontz, James Patterson, and old Stephen King stuff. Any suggestions on a similar style author?

We are going to Paris next month and I promised my little ones that we would send postcards home. Only, I have no idea how to go about it. Where would I buy stamps and what type? How do I address the postcards? I don't speak French, so I would like to know before I go- so it won't be so difficult once we are there. Thanks so much!

My mother and I are debating over gas mileage. Whenever she rides in my van she wants me to turn the air conditioner on. I swear the woman probably uses her air conditioner in the winter! I told her that it will ruin my gas mileage. She says it only brings the gas mileage down by a mile a gallon? I know better than to roll down the windows, but with the price of gas lately, I am willing to sweat and suffer with the windows up and the fan on?

What are your thoughts?

We are going to Paris from July 15-22. I would love any ideas/ suggestions. I have never been out of the US and am worried about being able to figure out the subway system/ trains. I am dying to take a train to Chartres, but am unsure how to do it. Our hotel is supposedly right next to te Saint Georges Metro station. I also would love to take a romantic dinner cruise, but don't know the best (and most affordable) one to take. We don't drink alcohol- so the wine is not an issue. Any guidance or suggestions will be highly appreciated. This will be our second honeymoon and my dream vacation- so I would love for it to be as perfect as can be.