Disney Blogging done right

Ok since I'm continuing to fall behind on making this a true "daily" blog I thought it only fair to offer anyone who might be reading this a chance to get their Daily Disney info elsewhere.

Some of my favorite places to get my Disney information are as follows:

Disboards - All the Disney information you could possibly handle at once...including Disneyland. There are tons and tons of forums that cater to everybody from budget travellers to DVC Members. I love reading people's reviews of restaurants here and the trip reports posted by others as well. I even have a few trip reports here myself!

Intercot - Disney information of all kinds but not quite as much of it. This was one of my first Disney boards to visit and provides all kinds of helpful information.

Allears.Net - Another great place to find Disney information. I have used this site especially for meal planning as they have one area just devoted to all of the menus for dining on Disney property...with prices!

Mousesavers - Lots of Disney planning information. They have a great page here devoted to discount codes. We've gotten some great rental car rates by using some of their codes! Sign up for their newsletter for even better deals and discounts.

Undercover Tourist - Looking to buy some Disney tickets? You have come to the right place here. I've purchased our Disney hopper passes here in the past several times. They have some great prices!

Disney Contests and Sweepstakes - Enter a contest to try to win a Disney vacation!

Last but not least...

Disney Bloggers - New blogs every half hour here!

That should help you get your Daily Disney for sure!

Letting the kids run wild in Disney

I recently had a conversation with a fellow Disneyholic and asked a question that I know varies from parent to parent and that is: at what age did you allow your kids to run around the Disney parks without you? I'm not going to share his answer here but I was surprised. Perhaps it is because I guess it's something I haven't thought too much about quite yet. I can remember as a teenager I was allowed to run free at the local amusement park near our house during a class trip...and I was in middle school at the time.

My youngest starts middle school next year. I'm not at all ready to let him run free through the parks and honestly I don't think he'd want to go through the parks without us.

As much as I encourage my kids to be self-sufficient and independent I also know their limitations. Of course in these times where cell phones are easily available I know at least I would always have the peace of mind when I am ready to make that leap that if I needed to find any of them they would be only a phone call away. Plus I feel that if there was anyplace I would feel they were safe it actually is Walt Disney World.


For the most part, during our trips we really do all enjoy the same things. Sure there are plenty of times when the kids want to do something but we insist on something else...and it usually works out that our suggestion ends up being a big hit with them. It's funny how mom and dad can sometimes be right sometimes about what the kids will like huh?

When we do feel like the kids need a little time to left off some steam without being herded around the parks, one of our favorite places to take them has been The Boneyard at the Animal Kingdom Park. We have taken them there at all ages and it's always been a hit. There is one way in and out, so they can't escape without us knowing about it. There are tons of slides and things to climb on and explore and I'm pretty sure they would spend hours there if we allowed it. It's usually a place where we take kids that are too small for other rides like Dinosaur or Primeval Whirl since those rodes are close to here. Now that the kids are getting bigger and can ride most of these rides, we don't spend as much time here since they would much rather be doing the big rides.

Playgrounds are fun for most kids 12 and under and we always make time during every vacation to give them time on at least one to let off some steam. It is a time when parents can just sit back and relax as well so they are ready to tackle the next park!

Disney with large groups

We have been lucky enough to be able to include our extended family with us for many of our Walt Disney World vacations. This particular photo was taken during a January 2006 trip that included Dina's parents, Frank's parents and Frank's sister and her family - her husband and their son Zachary. During this trip, Zach was just over a year old, Noah was 18 months old, Noelle was 3 years old and Nicolas was 5 years old but close to six. We had some decent January weather for Florida...some chilly mornings but also some sunny afternoons.

Honestly Disney makes travel with large groups pretty easy. We did have a few meals together and I didn't have a problem securing reservations for all 12 of us. One of those meals included our traditional meal at Chef Mickey's:





We always eat at least one meal at Chef Mickey's and pose for this photo in front of the restaurant...and we always buy it. It's just one of our traditions and sharing it with more family was nice this time. It's so great to see the kids' reactions to Mickey and Minnie visiting them at the table!

Touring the parks with the younger kids was really not that challenging. Sure there were rides that they could not ride but we either took advantage of Disney's Child Swap or one person (usually me) stayed behind with the kids while the others did the riding of the ride. There was also time for the little kids to pose for photos:


Overall we didn't find it a challenge to visit the parks with our larger group. This upcoming June trip we hope to have all of this family back with us again for our trip...and maybe even a few extra people that were not there for the January 2006 trip. We are looking forward to it!

Perhaps I should rename this weekly

You wouldn't think it would be that difficult for me to come up with a daily topic here...and I probably have enough topics for years...and yet I'm struggling to update this even weekly.

So I've said plenty of about Walt Disney World but what about other Disney parks? I can tell you that I have managed to visit Disneyland TWICE in my life, but don't have a great memory about the trips. My first trip was with my parents back in the mid-1980s and my second trip was in 1996 with my husband. I have yet to visit since Calfornia Adventure opened there. My husband has family in Calfornia and ended up there for a memorial service in September of 2010. While visiting with family, his cousin decided to go to Disneyland and my husband and his sister went along with her. He snapped some of these photos at my request. I am really hoping to take the kids to visit this park once they are a little bit older. If we go I want them to be able to experience everything there so it may be a few more years.

Test Blog from the phone

Now when I go on trips to Walt Disney World I can post updates right here! Look for lots of Direct from Disney posts in June of 2011!

Taking a chance on the California Grill

I have perfected the art of the Advance Dining Reservation at Walt Disney World and we never leave home without having many of our dining reservations in place. One of the places I have been known to book, and then cancel, in the past was the California Grill at Disney's Contemporary Resort. There were many trips where we'd have a reservation here, I'd take a peek at the menu, and then change my mind. I'm not an adventurous eater at all...in fact I've always been quite picky. It is not above me at all to walk out of a restaurant after looking at a menu...much to my husband's dismay. So when I finally decided to take a chance on the California Grill in celebration of our 10-year wedding anniversary while in Walt Disney World it was a big deal.

So in October of 2008 we finally kept a dining reservation at the California Grill. Once glance at the menu and I decided to give this flatbread a try. I LOVED it though when I read the description it didn't sound like something I would like all that much. I took a chance though...and I could not get enough!


My husband was a big sushi fan so he ordered this dish...and I decided to have my first try at sushi. I didn't eat a lot but it wasn't bad. I have since become a huge sushi fan too.

You just can't beat this view! We were seated at a table right next to the window, which of course added to the experience. I can't remember our waiter's name but I do remember he was great. I can recall also trying the Sonoma Goat Cheese Ravioli...another thing I would have never ordered in the past because...well goat cheese? As it turned out, I LOVED this one as well and in fact I have since found a copycat recipe and have made something very similar to it at home many times...and even my kids now beg for me to make it for them!

Our main course selections were beef of some kind, which were okay but they didn't compare to the previous selections and I could so go back and just have their appetizers and first course items as a meal.

After dinner, we walked outside to the patio area to watch wishes as they piped in the music there and it was truly a magical experience. We knew we would have to return again.

Needless to say, when we returned to Walt Disney World in May of 2009 with our entire family (the kids and my in-laws) we were sure to make a reservation. We weren't sure how the kids would do there, but our kids are usually very good in restaurants. I must say the wait staff that time went out of their way to keep the kids happy as well as the adults! It was another excellent experience...and I ended up trying OSTRICH of all things at that meal...and found it also fantastic. I guess you could say the California Grill has helped bring me out of my picky eating shell quite a bit by now. Therefore it should come as no surprise that this is one of our must-do reservations for each and every trip now!

Halloween with Mickey

We have been fortunate enough to make a few trips to Walt Disney World during the fall season. I think if I had to pick a favorite time to go to Walt Disney World, it would probably be October but I might be a bit biased since I think we've been there more times in October than during any other month.

Our wedding anniversary just happens to be in October, so we've been lucky enough to make a few adult-only trips out to Walt Disney World to celebrate. One of the coolest experiences during October is Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. This is a ticketed event meaning that you have to purchase an additional ticket to go to this party...you can't just be there with a regular ticket or annual pass and be able to stay for the extra fun. The tickets do entitle you to spend the evening at the Magic Kingdom which is something that is rare during October since the parks tend to close early during that time of year. Experiencing the Magic Kingdom at night is a whole new experience.


Walt Disney World does not discriminate about who can experience the fun at Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween party, so for those adults who miss being able to trick-or-treat without getting some really odd looks, this is the place for you! You don't even have to have a costume....just bring your treat bag and line up with everybody else at the designated areas and the kind Magic Kingdom Cast Members will gladly deposit some sugary goodness into the bag for you to enjoy.

The special Halloween parade is also fun to watch. There's just something about seeing some living dead characters that look like they are right out of the Haunted Mansion in a parade and seeing the villains get more than their fair share of parade time as well. Even the fireworks spectacular in the evening is particularly entertaining.


In addition to trick-or-treating, there are many other events throughout the park during the course of the evening, like special dance parties where there are usual surprise guest characters out on the dance floor! If you and your kids can hang out late at night, you also have the added bonus of very light crowds as it gets later in the evening and you can ride many rides over and over with little to no wait.

Mickey's Halloween event is something that you should definitely try to experience at least once!