Baby Mine!

Congratulations of your expected bundle of joy!

I often get the question, I'm pregnant and we are going to Disney! Now what?  First of all, take a deep breath. Your Disney trip can be tons of fun even with your little bun in the oven! I'm going to share with you my Top 5 reasons to enjoy your Walt Disney World when you are pregnant!!

1) I think my favorite part about vacation at Disney while pregnant is the food! Now I'm not suggesting you go overboard but it can be fun to enjoy a few extra treats. Plus no matter what you are craving, you'll most likely find it at Disney!

2) Believe it or not, you'll still have a ton of rides and attractions that you can experience! Disney has tons of shows (Beauty and the Beast, Festival of the Lion King, Nemo the Musical, It's Tough To Be A Bug, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, Indian Jones, Lights! Motors! Action!, Mickey's Philharmagic, Carousel of Progress, Country Bear Jamboree....to name just a few).   Plus you have lots of slow moving rides to enjoy!!  Remember the Disney parks are a complete experience. Take this time to slow down and explore all those parts of the parks you miss when you are racing from ride to ride!

Here are few rides you need to skip, and of course use your discretion and skip what you aren't comfortable with.

Magic Kingdom
Splash Mountain
Space Mountain
Big Thunder Railroad Mountain
Tomorrowland Indy Speedway

Animal Kingdom
Primeval Whirl

Expedition Everest
Kali River Rapids
Dinosaur
Kilimanjaro Safari

The Train to Conservation Station

Epcot
Test Track
Mission: Space

Hollywood Studios
Tower of Terror
Rock 'n Roller Coaster
Star Tours

3) Disney has a great resource for Mom's and Mom's-to-Be...the Baby Care Center's!!  While most people would think of only using these while you have a child in tow, but as a Pregnant momma sometimes you need to take a few minutes off your feet in the air conditioning.  These centers have lots of quiet spaces for Mom that include rocking chairs. There are also family spaces so if you do have younger kiddo's with you, you can all spend a few minutes together out of the hot sun!

4) One of the best things about expecting is the adorable outfits you get to purchase! Get your little one a unique souvenir from their very first trip to Disney! During our trip in 2011 we managed to get our little one quite a few fun gifts.  Luckily we had already found out it was a girl and  had named her.

Plus her first set of ears!

5) An amazing and unique way to document your pregnancy is by taking some great pictures while at Disney World! You can take advantage of Disney's PhotoPass services to get some iconic shots or even set up a mini-photo shoot with Disney at one their resorts.  Whatever you choose, they'll surely be photos to last a lifetime!

 We had our photo taken at Conservation Station where we held our wedding reception!

If you are thinking of planning a Walt Disney World Vacation, why not contact me? My services are always free! Amanda@Mouseketrips.com

Guest Review of Alaska

Every once in a while I get an email from a client that I just have to share. This one comes from a sweet client of mine that just took her family on their first Alaskan cruise just weeks after us! I hope you enjoy!!

Don't forget if you are a past client and want to share your experience with me, you can do so by Showing Some Love or if you'd like to do a trip report as a guest blogger email me at Amanda@mouseketrips.com

Hi Amanda!!!

We just arrived back this morning and I had to connect with you right away! We had an absolutely FANTASTIC, FABULOUS and MAGICAL time! So good in fact that we are contemplating on booking another one next year if the stars align! You will certainly hear from us if we decide... you will be the first to know.

The kids left the boat crying as they did not expect enjoying their surprise vacation that much! The staff, the boat etc. were wonderful and superseded our expectations! Your weather streak extended to us and we had absolutely wonderful weather... we even saw whales and dolphins swim alongside our boat as well as the boat went extremely close to the glacier in Tracy Arm. I cannot say enough great things about our week long experience and can't help but feel truly blessed!

I have to mention that during our cruise, our son was denied twice by Mickey to sign autographs. We asked Guest Services when we are able to get an opportunity to get his autograph during the remainder of our cruise. What they did next was something I had to tell you.. They surprised both my sons with a private meeting with Mickey, as well as awarded them with special certificates and 2 limited editions each of cruise specific and dated lithographs! Unbelievable! It was absolutely amazing and my kids were so thrilled! They truly made our trip magical!

I just had to connect with to thank you for absolutely everything you have done to make this trip an amazing one! Without you, there would have been no trip, so again a million thanks! You have customers for life!

We're headed to lunch now so I'm signing off ..

Once again.. we are forever indebted to you for the wonderful memories!



xoxoxoxo



-A

Trip of a Lifetime-Day 3, Part 2

When we left off, it was time to explore our rooms!  One question that was posted on Facebook last week was this:

Is it true that a verandah is a must have on an Alaskan cruise? (thinking of the cost but I love verandah's and don't want to miss a thing!)

We debated for a long time over what room type to get. We love having a Verandah and weren't sure if we would miss out by having an inside room.  On the Alaskan cruises, there is a big price difference between and inside and verandah room.  We finally decided that the money would be better spent on the ship and stuck with our inside room.

Ultimately I think it was the best choice for us.  The rooms aren't huge and if we had any more than 2 people in them, I could see how crowded it would be. We really missed the split bath but other than that, we spent most of our time up on Deck so we didn't miss the Verandah one bit....plus without any natural light, inside rooms are the best for taking naps!!

After we settled it was finally time to sail away!

One of the coolest parts about sailing out of Vancouver is going under the Lions Gate bridge!!  During the sail away party the ships horn wasn't played like normal, but as we went under the bridge they played it. So long Vancouver! See you in a week!

We hung out on deck and checked out the sights, but we could only wait so long...it was finally time for...

ICE CREAM!!

We chose the later dinner time on this sailing for a few reasons:

1) No need to rush back to the ship to get ready for dinner

2) We normally eat after Kennedy goes to bed so 8 is perfect for us!

Before dinner we went to the theater to catch the opening show which was a ton of fun and we got a sneak peak at an act that we'll talk more about later. One thing I haven't mentioned yet is Disney's alcohol policy. Out of all the cruise lines, Disney is the most lenient in what you may bring on board.  As long as you pack it in your carry-on and can carry it (no rolling luggage) you are good.  We brought on 3 bottles (rum, peach schanpps and raspberry vodka). We'll talk at the end of the trip about whether this was a good bargain or not.

We couldn't help ourselves and had to grab a few Lava Flow's before the show (reasonably priced at $5.75 plus 15% gratuity)

After the show (or dinner if you have early eating) you'll have some time to kill before heading to dinner (or a show).  They usually do a few fun 30 minute type activities.  Our first dinner would be in Parrot Cay. Our dinner rotation was PTA (Parrot Cay, Tritons and Animators Palate). I'm going to do my best at remember what we had to eat :)

Lauren and I ordered the 4-night wine package which meant over 7 nights we'd have 4 bottles to drink. I'll let you know during the trip recap how we did and if it was a good bargain.

Ignore Pat's grumpy face! You'll be assigned a table for the whole week and both the table and your servers will stay the same.

If you only see a few dishes it means more than one of us had the same entree, appetizer or dessert.

I think this was the only night we gobbled up our dessert before photographing it!  After dinner we headed outside for a walk.  I love how it didn't get too dark and the ship was lit up so beautifully!

Our first day was a busy one! Arrival day always seems to fly by! I'll leave you with this amazing video that Lauren create of Day 1 if you haven't seen it already. 

 Next up will be the start of our first day at sea!

Kennedy Sophia

Today my little girl turns 2! I can't believe how fast time is flying! Today's post is for my sweet Kennedy Sophia.

For as long as I remember, I wanted to be a Mom. I never could imagine a life without children.  It was hard at first. It took us a little while (and a little help) but before we knew it, you were on your way!  I feel like it was just yesterday that we found out we were having you!

And then it was your due date!

And then it wasn't...you sure took your sweet time!  The few days leading up to your birth I lived on Eggplant Parmesan because it supposedly induced labor for thousands of women!  The day before you were born your Daddy decided to do some  light gardening...and threw out his back! Luckily Nana was staying with us. It was June 23rd when I started having contractions during dinner. I had a feeling it would be soon but passe them off as Braxton Hicks. About 2:30 a.m. I went to get your Daddy who informed me he was going to bed....not yet Daddy. It's time!!

My labor was an extremely difficult and emotional time...I'll tell you when you're older.  Every single second was worth it to see your beautiful face.  I didn't get to hold you right away but we've sure made up for that.

You weren't an "easy" baby and you sure gave us a run for our money!  But you had the most amazing personality and could always make us laugh!

When you were 5 months old, we took you to Disney for the first time. Everyone said you were too young and wouldn't enjoy it. We knew otherwise the minute you saw your first parade.

When you were about 7 months old, we got you your best friend. You were inseparable from the start.

And then, right before your 1st birthday you gave us the scare of a lifetime. 4 stitches later and to this day you can barely see the scar.

Another whole year has gone by and you are the most amazing little girl.  You have an infectious laugh and are so silly! You love to make other's laugh.

You are loud and love to get everyone's attention! 

You absolutely LOVE to dance!

You are curious and adventurous.

You are so independent (sometimes to my dismay)

You and Walter and still the very best of friends..

You were big and brave even when Mommy wasn't sure she could be!

Your head full of curls suits your personality more than you know!

You love Doc McStuffins, Tangled and the Fab 5 (Mimmie and Minnie)

Happy Birthday my sweet, wild, crazy, funny girl!  We have loved getting to know you and can't imagine life without you! You are growing into an amazing little girl and we are so lucky to be a part of it!

PhotoPass-Making Memories Last a Lifetime

If you've been following my blog for say, more than a week, you'll know that we love to take photos while on vacation. We come home with literally thousands and I know we aren't the only family to do so. The one thing we don't do on vacation is have our photo's taken by Disney's PhotoPass photographers. Shocked right?  We try! We know the benefits and think it's a great service but we always seem to forget to stop and get our photo's taken. That's why today I wanted to talk about the benefits of Photopass Plus so you don't miss out like we do!

First of all let's talk about what PhotoPass is!  Photopass is a FREE service provided by Disney for any guests entering the parks. All over the parks (and water parks) you'll find Disney Cast Members in khaki vests with cameras. They are positioned near major park icons, character meals and other fun locations with great backdrops!

If you are staying onsite you'll simply use your Magic Band each time you see a photopass photographer!  When you get home you'll simply log in to your My Disney Experience account and click on photopass. You'll be able to view everything plus purchase photoas and other products.

If you are staying off-site, for the forseeable future you'll still receive a Photopass card.Don't worry if end if with multiple cards (we always do). You can combine them all later!

So basically as you explore the parks, anytime you see one of these photographers, you can stop, take your picture and be on your way!  When you get home you'll head to either your My Disney Experienace account OR http://www.disneyphotopass.com/ (and enter your card(s) number). Voila there are all your pictures!!

Now comes the tricky part...while the services are FREE, the pictures are not.  The great thing is you'll have plenty of options of fun products to put your pictures on. PLUS you'll have lots of fun stock photos to choose from AND you can upload all your own photos.

If you want to plan ahead,  you have two options.

PhotoPass CD Prepurchase

For just $119.95 (http://www.disneyphotopass.com/specialoffers/wdwphotocdlearnmore.htm) you can preorder the PhotoPass CD that will come complete not only all your Photopass CD but you can upload your own photos to it as well. If you wait to purchase it once you get home, you'll pay $169.95! 

Memory Maker'

-You get all the photos of everyone in your travel party taken by our Disney PhotoPass photographers at hundreds of locations throughout Walt Disney World Resort.

-Whether you pose in front of Cinderella Castle, share a hug with Mickey, or let us capture your fun family moments throughout the theme parks, all those great shots are yours.

-Even attraction photos are included, like that amazing shot of your plummet down Splash Mountain!

-Forget about having to purchase each photo individually, because you get digital copies of all of them to download and share with family and friends.**

The cost will $149 and can be purchased through your My Disney Experience account. The "window'" begins 3 days after you purchase. You will have 45 days from the time the picture is taken before it expires.

This is a great deal if you have some of these fun things planned for your trip! With single images running almost $20 a piece, this is a steal!!  With Photopass you can add fun borders and even take special magical photos in the parks.

If you are currently a client and want to add Memory Maker just send me an email at amanda@mouseketrips.com. If you aren't a client...why not? Send me an email too!