Hi all. Been forever since I've posted. A lot has changed since our last Disney trip 2 years ago. The hardest thing in the world in fact. We lost our amazing 18 year old son, Parker, to an erratic driver late last March. 
( It has been an impossible journey of grief. He was an incredible kid. He was a kid who could charm everyone and he was known for so many different talents. One of the things that was so amazing about him was his love of Disney. He had a down pat Mickey Mouse voice! 
He was very into theatre and was active in 3 theater groups. 5 days before he was taken, he was gracing the stage as Beast in Beauty and the Beast. He was the #1 pick of 500 given auditions for the Western Michigan Musical Theatre program for this term. We found this out the day of his wake. One of the things he wanted to do for summer internship was to join the program at Disney and play tuba for one of the roaming bands or sing with one of the Barbershop Quartets. When we were at Disney last, it was the final week of the American Idol Experience at the Disney Studios, where they selected 9 people out of the park through auditions to perform daily. He made it twice while we were there. I was so overly proud of him.
He was such a Disney fan that he was cremated and now his ashes are kept in a Mickey Mouse cookie jar. He was hugely popular and a world traveler so we put it out that if any friends who were traveling would like to take a pinch of his ashes to scatter to share the world with Parker and Parker with the world, we would be honored. He has been many places in the past 6 months including on 2 cruises, 1 being Disney and 3 times to Disney World and will be going to Disneyland later this month.
We have 2 other boys, Mitch, 23 and Foster, 15. Mitch graduated college in June and has moved back to help us move from NY to NC and to be with us as a family as we try to start healing our broken hearts. When we moved, we downsized quite a bit on our house. We have so much stuff and are needing to get rid of a lot of it because we don't fit. So we were sitting around the table the other night and I brought up the idea of instead of stuff for Christmas this year, we make memories, as memories of Parker are way more treasured than any stuff. It is time to continue making memories for us and for Parker in the form of a bucket list I am making for him. Things that we can do for him that he had wanted to do in his lifetime, to keep him close.
His plan for his Senior grad trip was to go to Japan, mainly because it has Disney Tokyo and he had been to Disney Land, World and Paris. With all the financial hits we have taken on top of our grief (yes, the fool who hit him, on a crest of a hill, passing a 3rd car in a no pass zone at over 80 mph, and who also died in the accident, was under insured...) we cannot go to Japan for him for at least a couple years, but we can do a budget trip to Disney World.
We are looking at doing a 4 night, 5 day hopper at one of the value resorts. In the past we have stayed at Coronado Springs Resort and twice at Art of Animation in Nemo and Lion King. Because it is getting close, our options are getting limited. The Pop Century is already booked so we have to stay at one of the All Star Resorts. Which of the 3 do you feel is the best? Last time we went, they were just starting out with the Magic Bands. Have they worked the kinks out of them? Is Disney Quest still covered on a Hopper pass and is it still even there? I've been reading for a while now that it was going away in 2016. Do they still have the Disney card game, scavenger hunt thing? I can't remember the name of it. If we don't get the Disney dining plan, can we still make reservations for restaurants?
I know Parker wants us to be happy, but every day has been tearful for me. I am hoping that Disney will bring some small bit of joy. I mean, it was a place he loved and it is Disney after all. The happiest place on earth, right? Any new tips we should know or things we can do to maybe enrich our trip would be so very appreciated.
Thank you all for listening.
Warmly, Kristen
So sorry for your loss.
I can't even imagine what you're going through.
