Disclosure: This is a sponsored post. All experiences are my own. This article contains affiliate links.
I’ve loved Disney as long as I can remember. My mother can attest to that. Its no secret that our first family trip had to be epic (and i’m pretty sure the kids are hooked too). There was lots of planning involved and I thought I’d give you a behind the scenes of some of the special things I did in addition to the trip to make it special. Happy to answer questions if you have any <3
Nails
Little (E) ADORES having her nails done (yes I realize I’ve created a monster). But for special occasions we indulge her. Therefore the first thing we did when getting ready to fly out was to go have our nails done (toes too cause #Florida). We always head over to Rainbow Nails in New City and have them done. While I am sure that others in the area cater to kids, this one makes her feel like a #princess, and do the cutest designs for her. I went with the Shellac so that they would be durable for the trip (worked like a charm).
New Fun Pajamas (Kept a secret)
(A) is a HUGE Dinosaur fan, and although there isn’t too much Dino stuff at Disney we went ahead and got him some Jurassic World ones cause he loves them. (E) of course needed a princess so I got Belle as she didn’t own them yet (no I actually have no idea how). I packed them right up into their bags so they didn’t see them until we got there. It was a really sweet realization. Now that we are home every time they put them on they remember the fun we had there and talk about it.
Photo Mat
You can get the Mat anywhere, I went to AC Moore- its an 11×14 mat with an 8×10 opening. It fit into my standard book bag, and ended up being one of my all time favorite things. The cast members used it for fun poses when signing with the kids, and its the absolute best memento on our wall at home. The kids have planned to do it forever now (when we go to Disney or say Universal) to have a mat signed and frame a family photo of our adventure. We also ordered this pack of Sharpies so that they could color coordinate each signature.
Pearl Cages
I had heard about this from my travel agent (Scott) and thought that my rock hunting two would love it. So I ordered cages in advance one for each kiddo and we went when we traveled to Epcot. We researched the night before in the hotel room how to get the best Pearl when you choose, to be prepared. The kids ADORE them, and I am so very glad that we did it. The choosing was fun, and they love wearing them- what a special keepsake. Choosing a pearl is $18 and I didn’t want to spend too much on the settings so this was a great way to save a little.
Park Clothing
I didn’t want matchy matchy- well kind of but RNYD REALLY didn’t. So we went with “themes” at my sister in laws recommendation (shes keeping count and has now made the BLOG 6 times). RNYD got t-shirts that were already made, and he would normally wear. I got a few of those too. (E) was easy She was a princess (Ariel) at MK, Chewie at HS and wore a twirly dress at AK and Epcot that I made myself. I actually made sweatshirts and shirts for EPCOT for the whole family- not sure making its for you? No problem- Marcie at MHC Creations would be the perfect gal for the job. Her work is impeccable as is her pricing and her turn around time.
Direct: (914) 645-5028
Email: Info@MHCCreations247.com
(A)’s wardrobe was more difficult. At 8.5 years old he’s a little old for a prince costume. So I made him a PPA (Princess Protection Agency shirt -Dad too). For HS he “disneybounded” (dressing like characters without traditional costumes) as Han Solo thanks to this vest, and at AK he did the same as Owen from Jurassic World– yes I know he isn’t Disney, but the kid loves dinosaurs and maybe we’ll use it when we hit Universal too.
Purchased Items
Meals
Go through all of the character meals in advance and see which ones are the BEST for your family. Your travel agent can help you with that. What I can tell you is that mine did NOT. I had to figure it all out myself. In fact, when my son got sick at one of the parks and we needed to cancel a sit down meal and I was freaking out because I didn’t want to lose my credits and hadn’t researched enough to fix it, I reached out to Scott Walters a DIFFERENT agent who came to my rescue. He cancelled my reservation and booked me an even BETTER one the next morning for our last breakfast. We got to meet 4 characters we would have missed otherwise, and gained early access to Epcot that day. It was FABULOUS- and that’s one reason why you will continually see me singing his praises.
Luggage
Got the kids their very own luggage so that they can use it every time we go on an adventure (or when they go to Nana’s). This set came with “personal” bag as well so they were able to pack their activities for the flight in there, while their carry on went in the overhead bin. Its easy for them to maneuver and has held up well. We took it locally to have a little picture and monogram added. Again, MHC could do this (I had done it before I met Marcie).
Most important is that there is SO much to do at Disney its a great idea to book with a knowledgeable agent. I highly recommend Scott Walters. He saved my butt a few times. I freaked out on a few occasions when I felt lost and the agent that I had booked with fell a bit short. I was disappointed in that. Your agent should ask you about what you like and dislike far in advance, fight for you to get deals, make suggestions for you based on your family’s needs and be supportive. When my son caught a cold and we had to cancel a sit down dinner, he booked us a character breakfast for the following morning (our last) in moments so that we didn’t waste the credits and still had the best experience ever. He will be booking any future family trips for us, that’s for sure.
Scott Walters (845) 558-1225
http://www.goawayoftentravel.com
