Disney with Little Ones: How Old is Too Old For a Stroller?

1097189_10101937237682224_7397468992761235270_oMy children have been to Walt Disney World two times so far: at ages 2 and 3 and again at 4 and 5. When we go back, they’ll be…you guessed it… ages 6 and 7. In planning our previous trips, the strollers were a no brainer but 6 and 7 year olds might look a little ridiculous in strollers that were intended for toddlers. My kids no longer use a stroller any other time – we don’t use it because they are lazy. Long days in the parks can be taxing on short little legs. The boys did their fair share of walking last time, but when they’d start to get grumpy, I was more than happy to chauffer them around in their multi-purpose strollers. Read more

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Disney with Little Ones: Where to Begin?

12068682_10101924749139364_5277941644728971496_oPeople don’t have to know me for very long before they discover that I am a huge Disney enthusiast. From my pin boards on Pinterest, desktop backgrounds on my monitor at work, pictures of my kids in front of Cinderella Castle on my desk, to hearing me talk about our last (or next trip to WDW) and everything in between, it’s pretty obvious. Because of my widely know love for all things Disney, I get asked a certain question quite often. 

“Hey – we’re thinking about going to Disney. Where do we start?”  Read more

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Disney with Little Ones: So Worth the Wait

12232819_10101907638264694_6412346602166058751_oI’m as much of a kid as anyone and I’ve always enjoyed doing character greetings. I’ve never requested an autograph but would jump at the chance to have my photograph taken with Ariel, Belle, Sully, or other favorites as a keepsake memory from various vacations. I’ll even admit that I’ve felt a little starstruck at times when meeting face characters, not quite sure what to say or how to have a memorable interaction. With all of that being said, I’ve never voluntarily waited in a long line to meet any character.  Read more

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Disney with Little Ones: To Tell or Not to Tell?

12240919_10101894709578884_3078307551306772096_oOur next Disney vacation is still pretty far away, so I’ve got an important decision to make. We’ve taken our children on 2 Disney vacations so far and I’m really excited about our next trip. They’ll be 6 and 7 years old by then so it will be a much different experience than the ones when they were 2 & 3 and then 4 & 5. With the last 2 trips, I excitedly shared every detail of our planning with them as I could hardly contain my own excitement. Next time, I’m debating keeping it a secret. Since we haven’t booked our next trip or officially started planning, there’s still time to opt for keeping it a secret. To tell or not to tell?  Read more

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Disney with Little Ones: Why We Stay at Value Resorts

12194859_10101878703709774_5775919704700746788_oI was raised in a frugal home. Not because clipping coupons was trendy in the 1980s, but because we didn’t have extra money. We didn’t go on fancy vacations, but my parents did try to take us on an annual trip. The one time I went to Disney World as a child, it was partly due to my mother having won a 3 night stay at the Ramada Inn in St. Petersburg, less than two hours from Orlando. It was May of 1989, the month that MGM (now Disney’s Hollywood Studios) opened. We spent one day at Magic Kingdom and one day rushing through both EPCOT and MGM with tickets awarded to us after being tortured with sitting through a time share presentation. Regardless of how we got there, those two days left lasting memories of a magical family vacation that I have treasured my entire life. We didn’t stay on property, or even know what “on property” meant at that time.  Read more

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