I Served. I Came Home. I Took My Family to Disney.

You can call me Strambo. It's a nickname I use in honor of my father, who was my greatest teacher. He was a Vietnam veteran who later became a high school English teacher, and "Strambo" was a nickname that stayed with him long after his own school days were over. From him, I learned to value curiosity, storytelling, and the importance of sharing what you've learned with others. This blog is, in many ways, an extension of those lessons.

I've spent the last 22 years serving in the Army Reserve. During that time, I experienced much of what military families know all too well: deployments, uncertainty, missed holidays, and the constant challenge of balancing service to country with time at home. Like many who served during the Global War on Terror, much of my adult life was shaped by the unpredictability that came with it. For years, the future often felt too uncertain to make long-term family plans.

Unlike many Disney fans, I didn't grow up going to Disney World. It wasn't a place I knew particularly well, and I certainly wasn't one of those people who could navigate the parks from memory. By the time my wife and I welcomed our daughter, we were starting our family later in life, due in large part to the realities and uncertainties of military service. Once we finally had the opportunity to focus on making family memories, one of our first big vacations together was a trip to Disney World.

That first visit was unforgettable. It was also overwhelming. I didn't understand how FastPass worked. I had no idea whether staying on-site was worth the extra expense. I didn't know the differences between resorts, how to structure our park days, or how to take advantage of the military discounts that were available to us. Everywhere I turned, it felt like other families had unlocked some secret Disney playbook that I had somehow missed.

Yet despite all of that, Disney left a lasting impression on me. The memories we made together as a family were worth every bit of the confusion. Somewhere between the rides, the late nights, the unexpected moments, and seeing Disney through my daughter's eyes, I realized this wasn't going to be a one-time trip. We came back. Then we came back again. And again.

With each visit, I learned something new. I became fascinated by the strategy behind planning a Disney vacation — from resorts and dining reservations to transportation, ticket options, Lightning Lanes, and all the little details that can make or break a trip. What began as a family vacation slowly evolved into a hobby. I wasn't trying to become a Disney expert. I simply enjoyed learning as much as I could about a place that had become so important to my family.

This blog is where I share those experiences. You'll find trip reports, lessons we've learned, reviews, planning successes and failures, thoughts on Disney's military offerings, and occasional opinions on what Disney gets right and where it could improve. My goal is simple: to document our family's Disney journey and share what I've learned along the way. If my experiences help another family save a little money, avoid a mistake, or simply feel more confident planning their own trip, that's wonderful.

After 22 years in uniform, I've come to appreciate that time with family is life's most valuable resource. For us, Disney became one of the ways we made the most of that time together. This is the story of those adventures. I'm glad you're here.