So a select few, including our very own Divina Rodriguez, is off to the amazing Disney Social Media Moms conference and I’ve got Disney on my mind. Remembering all the great memories from my trip last year, I found a GREAT way to keep those memories alive at Shutterfly!
I am loving the personalized plates and cups in Cars, Toy Story, Disney Princesses and Mickey & Minnie themes. Check out some of our creations. Both products are made from high-quality BPA-free, food-safe, dishwasher-safe plastic. The cup holds a generous 12 ounces and retails for $18.99 and the plate measures 10×10 inches, retailing for $24.99. In just a few clicks you will have beautiful custom piece your child will go GAGA over!
What I love about Shutterfly is their amazing quality. I have made photo books yearly for each child and recently ventured into their photo gifts including their nifty mouse pad. My husband just loves his mouse pad with the Little Man in a Star Wars action scene. Making Shutterfly even more awesome is that you can always find a coupon simply by googling, not to mention they are constantly running promotions. Ie. Right now the personalized cups are $15.19 and the plates are only $19.99 making them perfect birthday gifts for your favorite little Disney fan!
Breakfast is gonna be fun at our house!
{ disclaimer: Shutterfly provided us with a code for a free plate and cup. All other projects were created and paid for by ourselves. }
Suzanne Chan, one of the Trumpeting Media founders, is a former marketing/PR executive whose life was dramatically changed by parenthood. Still channeling the energy of her former life, she wears many hats – student, daughter, wife, registered nurse, certified lactation counselor, friend and blogger – but the job she’s most proud of is mother… Read all about her life, her loves and all the bumps along the way at MomConfessionals.com.
How adorably cute are these umbrella strollers by Delta Children?! The collection includes designs from some of our favorite classics – Mickey, Minnie, Winnie the Pooh, Piglet and Tigger! These new and adorable styles are now available at Sears. Prices range from $24 – $56.
I think they’d be perfect for a Disney World Trip, perhaps #DisneySMMoms? These strollers are built to last too! Don’t be fooled by the super low price. Check out my visit to the Delta Children’s Safety Lab:
Suzanne Chan, one of the Trumpeting Media founders, is a former marketing/PR executive whose life was dramatically changed by parenthood. Still channeling the energy of her former life, she wears many hats – student, daughter, wife, registered nurse, certified lactation counselor, friend and blogger – but the job she’s most proud of is mother… Read all about her life, her loves and all the bumps along the way at MomConfessionals.com.
With most airlines charging for baggage, it’s smart sometimes to do carry on only. A bit of a pain with children in tow, but if budget is key, it’s a must. On our recent trip to Disney. Each person had their own carry on. The big issue with this is carrying of liquids. Airline restrictions do not allow bottles greater than 3oz. Shipping toiletries for the whole family ahead of time is a great work around. It not only saves valuable luggage space but weight as well sometimes. It was great not to carry shampoo, soaps, lotions and diapers on the plane and have it all waiting for us when we arrived. A major bonus is faster passage through security. Our favorite go to sites are SOAP.COM and AMAZON.COM.
With that said, it may be totally worth the $25 or $50 charge to check in a bag if you’re traveling with 2 or more kids. Especially if those toiletries purchased equal that amount. If you’re lucky, with everyone watching their budget and doing the carry on thing, they might extend a courtesy at the gate to help the overcrowding.
Another great option is to check if your resort has self-service laundry service on-site. We know definitely that Art of Animation does!
STAY AT A WDW RESORT. Worth every penny! Free Airport & Luggage Transfer through the famed Disney’s Magical Express – a savings of over $100. I did love getting that magical envelope with the vouchers and luggage tags. It heightened everyone’s anticipation for the trip. Free shuttle to all the Disney parks – Parking is $14 per day at each park. Let’s not forget the special Extra Magic Hours just for WDW Resort guests.
So it may not be in everyone’s budget to stay at a WDW Resort and while I am insistent that it is worth every penny, if you can handle the extra time travel, paying for parking etc., then heed this… Get or borrow a AAA discount card. Disney tickets are discounted through the AAA office.
If you purchase your park tickets through AAA (which I found to be the cheapest) and you are planning to drive to the parks you should take advantage of the Diamond Parking Spaces which are right up front. You receive a Diamond Lot permit in your ticket packet to display on your dashboard. No need to wait for and take trams out to outer parking areas. Quick entry and exit.
When you buy your tickets, take a quick photo of the back of the cards. That ID# comes in handy if you lose your ticket. The park can only reissue lost tickets with that number.
Take a picture of your children right before heading into the park. If you happen to lose a child, it’s super helpful for Cast Members. Also show your children how to identify Cast Members. This was super helpful when we lost “A” at the enormous World of Disney at Downtown Disney. We were completely panicked but Cast Members were on it the minute they heard us repeatedly calling her name. Within 2 minutes she was back safe with us. More Disney Magic!
To skirt paying for parking, we discovered this great tip, park at Downtown Disney and just hop on to any resort bus which will connect you to the buses going to the parks.
Check out the hours of operation for all the parks you plan on visiting to maximize your visit. They are available 180 days in advance. For instance, during our trip, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party was happening on two nights of our trip. Our day at the Magic Kingdom would be cut short around 6PM that day if we didn’t pay the additional ticket price to stay. TIP: If you happen to have a Park Hopper Pass, it won’t be a total waste of a day. You can hop on over to another park with Extra Magic Hours.
I am always kicking myself when I leave the park and forgot a souvenir. I was thrilled to discover many of those exclusive park items are available online at DisneyParksShop.com.
I am a huge fan of Disney’s PhotoPass+. Now that you can purchase them ahead of your trip and save a whopping $5o, I am ALL for it! During a previous trip, I carried my huge DSLR and wasn’t able to ride many of the rides in fear of damaging my very expensive camera. With the purchase of the Disney PhotoPass+ I am free to enjoy the park and worry less about capturing all of those moments. With tons of Disney Professional Photographers all around the park, I am getting quality photos that I actually get to be a part of too! This time I will carry my small pocket camera and let the Disney Professional Photographers take care of the rest!
Who doesn’t love glow sticks. They are perfect for a late night at the park. They are always available at the Target Dollar Bins and make for some added fun.
Rumor has it every park has their own birthday pins designated for the individual park. Can anyone verify?
Your budding artist must visit “The Magic of Disney Animation” in Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Don’t miss “The Animation Studios” at the back. A real Disney Animator will set them up on a stool and drawing board and walk them step-by-step through how to create their favorite Disney character.
Sharpie sponsors the Kidcot stations in Future World where kids can collect a lanyard full of charms. Visit all 6 stations to collect the different charms with fun themes like Kim Possible.
Innoventions East
Innoventions West
The Seas with Nemo and Friends
The Land
Test Track
Imagination!
Build your own virtual robot at Future World’s “Innoventions East – Fantastic Plastic Works”. Create your own robot to take home with you. This robot stands about 7 inches tall – with moveable limbs!
During our last two trips to Disney, we took notice of a hidden 20% off coupon at the end of some of our dining receipts. They do hold certain restrictions like must be used before 1pm, expiration date and only usable at one store per Disney Park. Read the fine print. Unless you’re looking for a park specific souvenir, we saved all of our coupons for the very last day and used it at the overwhelming World of Disney in Downtown Disney. I even saved all the receipts from any spontaneous purchases made during our stay, ie. my sparkly Minnie ears. I purchased it again at a discount with my coupon at World of Disney and returned it at the full price with my original receipt. The kids were none the wiser and I went home a few dollars richer (saved).
Suzanne Chan, one of the Trumpeting Media founders, is a former marketing/PR executive whose life was dramatically changed by parenthood. Still channeling the energy of her former life, she wears many hats – student, daughter, wife, registered nurse, certified lactation counselor, friend and blogger – but the job she’s most proud of is mother… Read all about her life, her loves and all the bumps along the way at MomConfessionals.com.
In this day in age, the lost art of a written letter is hard to find. I get so excited to get a piece of mail that isn’t a bill or an official letter. So when I went for a rare trip to the post office this morning, I was caught by surprise to see (2) sets of adorable Disney stamps with the perfect captions, “Mail a SMILE” and “Send a HELLO” These are perfect for my little one’s upcoming 3rd Birthday or even just to celebrate our trip to see the unveiling of the brand new Fantasyland at Walt Disney World in early December. With beloved characters from Cars, Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Monsters Inc and many more, they will best use to send letters from our stay at the new Art of Animation Resort. Even better? These stamps are FOREVER! Meaning they are forever worth the price of a First Class Stamp lasting beyond any increase. Yay! Now did I miss a Disney Princess Series?
Suzanne Chan, one of the Trumpeting Media founders, is a former marketing/PR executive whose life was dramatically changed by parenthood. Still channeling the energy of her former life, she wears many hats – student, daughter, wife, registered nurse, certified lactation counselor, friend and blogger – but the job she’s most proud of is mother… Read all about her life, her loves and all the bumps along the way at MomConfessionals.com.
Who doesn’t love the word FREE! I’m a little late to the party with this, but hot on the success of the FREE Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Road Rally Appisode and Jake’s Never Land Pirate School App, Disney just launched 3 additional FREE apps for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch: WATCH Disney Channel, WATCH Disney XD and WATCH Disney Junior. These 3 FREE apps will allow you to take full episodes of your kids’ favorite Disney Channel, Disney XD and Disney Junior shows with you wherever your summer travels take you this year. A selection of full episodes from Disney Channel favorites including “Good Luck Charlie,” “Shake It Up” and “Phineas and Ferb,” Disney XD’s “TRON: Uprising,” and Disney Junior’s “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” and “Jake and the Never Land Pirates” will all be available. If you’re a Comcast customer, you get an added bonus. You will be the first to be able to access a LIVE stream and next day episodes from each of the networks online or from the apps anywhere, anytime you can access WiFi.
The first of the free apps, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Road Rally Appisode brings viewing, learning and interaction together into one fun-filled iPad experience. Fans 2-7 years old can touch, tap, shake, swipe, drag and talk through an entire episode of “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.” The activities presented in the “appisode” include valuable counting, critical thinking and problem solving skills.
Using Jake’s Never Land Pirate School App, kids can become completely immersed in Never Land, completing pirate-themed challenges presented in Sailing, Pirate Band, Map and Spyglass and Pixie Dust classes. Features include: hunting for doubloons on Doubloon Beach; a customizable pirate certificate signed by Jake; and the ability to import a child’s photo.
I’m a realist, my kids are iPad addicts, at least they are learning something educational now!
All these apps are available for FREE from the App Store on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.
Suzanne Chan, one of the Trumpeting Media founders, is a former marketing/PR executive whose life was dramatically changed by parenthood. Still channeling the energy of her former life, she wears many hats – student, daughter, wife, registered nurse, certified lactation counselor, friend and blogger – but the job she’s most proud of is mother… Read all about her life, her loves and all the bumps along the way at MomConfessionals.com.
ey & Minnie themes. Check out some of our creations. Both products are made from high-quality BPA-free, food-safe, dishwasher-safe plastic. The cup holds a generous 12 ounces and retails for $18.99 and the plate measures 10×10 inches, retailing for $24.99. In just a few clicks you will have beautiful custom piece your child will go GAGA over!
What I love about Shutterfly is their amazing quality. I have made photo books yearly for each child and recently ventured into their photo gifts including their nifty mouse pad. My husband just loves his mouse pad with the Little Man in a Star Wars action scene. Making Shutterfly even more awesome is that you can always find a coupon simply by googling, not to mention they are constantly running promotions. Ie. Right now the personalized cups are $15.19 and the plates are only $19.99 making them perfect birthday gifts for your favorite little Disney fan!
