To rent a stroller or carry one from home

Strollers are a very handy part of taking a trip with a child.  Most larger places-including malls- now have strollers you can rent, but are you better off to rent one or to carry your stroller from home?  We have done both and both have worked well--until this last trip!  Below are the pros and cons on both.

If you carry your own stroller, you will know that you have one that your little one is comfortable in.  It's theirs and they know all about it.  Familiarity is sometimes really good.  If your little one is really little, this can be big since they will need to lay down in the stroller at some point and this is much easier in an consumer stroller rather than a commercial-type stroller.  On the other hand, you will have to carry that huge stroller around.  It must be folded to be on buses and if you go on an attraction and leave it parked, will it be there when you get out (most likely yes-we've never had ours messed with)?  If you have a baby, packages, and a stroller, you will need atleast three adults to carry all of this on a bus-trust me!  We had a stranger help us get a stroller on and off the bus last week.  Another consideration is if you are flying, will there be a fee for the stroller and what special handling do you need to do for it?

If you use the commercial stroller, you will receive a receipt when paying the rental fee and if the stroller is missing when you come out of an attraction, you show the receipt for that day and they hand you another stroller-easy-peasy!  There's no carrying it on buses!  (Yay!)  On the other hand, you do have to carry the baby more that way or have a possibly whiney toddler to "drag" around.  The commercial strollers are easy to get in and out of-that's bad and good since the little one can get out while you are moving unless they are strapped in securely.  The commercial strollers are also not plush, but are made of hard plastic so not much comfort from home there.  The fee of renting a stroller for a day can range anywhere from $5 at the mall to $20 or more in a park. 

As you see, there are many reason to use either type of stroller, so weigh them carefully to make the best choice for your family.  With a little one, we've always carried ours from home, but as they get older, we choose to rent.  Good luck with whichever way you go. 

MIA for a really fun reason

I have been MIA for a few days and wanted to explain to my friends.  I was at Walt Disney World checking out all the great things there and trying new things to come back and tell you about.  It was so much fun!  I have so much to tell you about and don't want to tell you all at one time because it would be one massive post!  For now, I'll leave you with a few tidbits to keep you going and hopefully looking for more soon. 

The view from Animal Kingdom Lodge Savannah vew room

Birthday presents from Animal Kingdom Lodge

More later!

Home Depot

I love to check my email each moring to find out what kind of great deals are available today.  It's so much easier than having to go to each website and look the information up.  If you are a Home Depot shopper, they also have a newsletter that is very much worth signing up for.  You can get early notice of great special offers and promotions from Home Depot in your inbox instead of finding out after all the "good stuff" is all gone.  Check it out here.

Right @ Home

Are you a member of Right at Home?  If not, now might be a great time to join.  Right at Home is a great way to find recipes, time-saving tips, and get great offers.  I've been a member for quite a while now and I love all the opportunities to receive free products to try or coupons to make those products cheaper.  If you are interested in joining, click here and join me on a great site!

Walgreen's deals posted

One of my favorite ways to save money is to shop the sales at Walgreen's with coupons but if I'm not prepared by knowing what coupons I will need or how many of what item, then I won't save as much money as I could.  One way for me to be prepared is by checking out the store match-ups at We Use Coupons.  The members of WUC post all the match ups they find here on the Walgreen's forums. 

Check out the website and see all the ways you can save money.  There are many grocery stores, big box stores, and drug stores posted along with many other ways to save a bundle.  You can also find out what coupons are coming out in the weekend newspapers before they come out by going here.  Check it out!

Tanga is giving away Disney gift cards!

Tanga is giving away Disney gift cards... not just any Disney gift card... $250 Disney gift cards!  If there was anything I love, it's a Disney gift card.  I get them for birthdays, anniversaries, Mother's Day, and Christmas.  It's what I ask for and what my family is nice enough to give me since they know there's nothing I love more than Disney. 

Right now, Tanga is giving them away and it's not even a holiday!  There are two ways to enter.  First, when you enter yourself, you get an entry.  Secondly, when someone else enters using your referral link, if they are the winner, you get a Disney gift card too!  So enter yourself to get your entry, then post your referral link so others can get you more chances.  You can go here to enter the contest.  Good luck!!

Great magazine deal from Eversave

From now until Saturday, you can get some great magazine deals with Eversave.  Pay only $10 to receive a subscription to your favorite magazines like Everday with Rachel Ray, All You, Better Homes and Gardens or more through Magazine Outlet.  There are over 30 titles to choose from.  You may buy up to three of these saves for your personal use. 

To make this deal even better, if you are new to Eversave, you will get an extra $2 off your first purchase making your magazine subscription only $8!  What a great deal!  If you use this for All You magazine, you will make more than that back from the coupons in the first issue.  Check them out here now.

Tips and Tricks on Thursday- Making maps

One of the most fun parts of going to Walt Disney World is the planning.  It's fun to remember the things you've done and think of all the fun you will have on the things you haven't yet experienced.  One great way to add to the anticipation and fun of planning is to order the customizable maps from Walt Disney World.  One of the best parts of it is--they are free!

The customizable maps are very nice.  You choose the attractions you want to be shown on your family's maps.  They are printed on heavy paper and resemble old  treasure maps.  You can choose items for each park as well as for the over all resort area, including your favorite resorts.

To make your very own customizable maps, go here to begin and enjoy!  In about 6 weeks, you will have an awesome package from Disney!

Great deals from Eversave

Eversave has increased their referral bonus to $15 through July 12.  All you have to do to qualify for this increased bonus is refer a friend by 7/12 and when they make a purchase in the next 30 days, you get the $15 credited to your account.  Easy money--especially with today's save!

Today's save is Woman's Day magazine which would normally be a really good save to get, but today, it's extra special!!  The normal 1 year subscription rate is $9.99 and Eversave has it for $5.  To make the deal even sweeter, if you use the promo code WOMAN, you will get an extra $2 off making a one year subscription only $3!! 

So if you combine the two deals, you refer a friend, they buy Woman's Day for $3, and you make $15!  That's a win-win for you both!

Eversave is a daily deals website with great deals in many areas as well as online deals and travel deals.  Be sure to check them out daily to get the best deals for your area.

I graduated! I earned my EARS!!!

For several weeks now, I've been quietly working away on a project that I am so excited to tell you about.  It all started with my love for all things Disney....

I've always loved planning Disney trips.  I love to plan my own trips, but I also love to plan for others.  I've thought many times about being a travel agent but always thought it was something that would cost my friends money if I was a travel agent and helped them book their travel.  I'm too cheap to cost my friends more money if I didn't want to pay extra myself! 

About a year ago, I learned the real truth.  It's not me or my friends that would pay the travel agent.  It would be the company we traveled with or to.  Well, that was all I needed to start the gears turning on what I needed to do to be a travel agent and put my love for Disney (and all other things trave) to good use. 

A month ago, I signed up as a travel agent with Magic of Mickey Travel and have now completed my College of Disney Knowledge training.  I graduated and got my ears!! 

All this to say, if you or anyone you know would like to book a trip to anywhere, including and especially Disney, please let me know.

Chris
chrisa@magicofmickey.com
http://www.magicofmickey.com/dream-makers/chris-altman/

Wild Wednesday!-Dinosaurs

One of the wildest beasts would have to be the dinosaur.  Dinosaurs can be super hard to find-but not if you go to Disney World.  They seem to be lots of places there.  Some are sweet, innocent-looking dinosaurs like this one here at Hollywood Studios.  This one even provides refreshing ice cream on hot days.

Dinosaur Gertie's

Then there's this one at Dowtown Disney.  Where this one resides, (TRex-the restaurant) you can find awesome food and refreshments.

TRex

If you step on over to Animal Kingdom, you can find an entire land devoted to dinosaurs-Dinoland USA.  Here you will find such beasts as Triceratop Spin, Cretaceous Trail, Dino-Sue (who's there waiting to have her picture made with you), Fossil Fun Games (where you can play carnival like games), Primevil Whirl, The Boneyard (where little ones can dig until their heart is content!), and DINOSAUR-the biggest, scariest beast, this side of the Asia section of Animal Kingdom.  This big beast is just waiting to jump out and scare you when you least expect it.  Check it out.... if you're brave enough!

DINOSAUR

Triceratops Spin

Dino Sue

Have you signed up for Chili's emails?

When you join Chili's email club, not only will you get the latest happenings and offers from Chili's but you will also get a coupon for a free order of Chips & Skillet Queso.  What a tasty way to start a great meal!

Tasty Tuesday-Breakfast at a WDW park

Have you ever wanted to be in a WDW park before it opened and get that perfect picture in front of the most recognizable icons in the world?  Many think that's not possible, but it actually is possible and a very special time to be in the parks. 

Dining reservations can be made for some restaurants up to one hour before the parks open, giving you plenty of time to eat before making the mad dash to get the most elusive of the fast passes.  At Magic Kingdom, you can make reservations for Crystal Palace and Cinderella's Royal Table before the parks open.  At Disney's Hollywood Studios, you can make reservations for Hollywood & Vine before the parks open. 

At all three of the restaurants, you not only are getting into the parks early on those days and getting those awesome pictures, but you are getting a character buffet meal also.  What a way to start the day!

These buffets feature all the usual suspects, like eggs, pastries, cereals, sausage, and bacon, but most importantly, there are Mickey waffles!  I can't tell you if it's the shape of these waffles or not, but these would have to be the best waffles ever according to my taste buds.  YUM!

If you are on the Disney Dining Plan, Hollywood & Vine and Crystal Palace take one table service each and Cinderella's Royal  Table is two table service credits per person.