25 Days & Counting - A Checklist!

Well, I'm sitting here at 25 days and counting until being back at Walt Disney World and I've decided, it's time to start tackling the final preparation steps before vacation.  In order to stay on track, and to hopefully give you some good ideas for your next vacation, I'm going to share my next few weeks of prep work with you, and of course, follow it up with a trip report.  So here goes...

When you're planning a Walt Disney World vacation, especially at a year or more out, it seems like you do all the big stuff, then you just sit and wait.  Decide where to stay...check...how many days/nights...check...make that deposit...check...at 180 days, make your dining reservations...check...pay off the balance (at least 45 days in advance)...check.  So now you're in the home stretch.  What's left to do?  Well, that really depends on you and the type of vacationer you are.  Are you an over-the-top uber-planner who wants everyone to wear matching clothes on certain days and plans to bring enough snacks to feed a small army?  Or are you a throw your clothes in the suitcase the night before and don't worry cause you're on vacation kind of person?  Maybe somewhere in between?  I personally tend to plan a lot, but I'm never completely packed until the night before.  So anyway, here's my starting point for the next 25 days:

• Begin looking at the wardrobe:  So for this trip, it will be me, my mom, my son Payton & my nephew, Ari.  We are not going to do a bunch of matching shirts, but I would like for us to look like we coordinate just a little bit.  So I'm going to start looking at Disney shirts that Payton & I have, as well as look for a few for mom and Ari, and see what kind of combinations I can come up with.
• Make some T-shirt designs for the boys:  Now I know the cousins would like some personalized T-shirts for this trip, so I'm going to work on making some iron-on designs for them.  There are so many creative Disney fans out there on the web, so do some searches and see what's out there.  One of my personal favorite past t's was a tie-dye Mickey head shirt I made for my family a few years ago using a bleach pen.  Really easy& affordable, and we got a lot of great comments on the shirts.
• What needs to be ordered?:  There are always some things you need for your vacation that you can't just walk into a Wal-Mart to pick up.  For example, I am running low on replacement contact lenses.  I refuse to go to Disney without a spare pair, so it's time to order more so they'll be ready to pick up well before the trip.  Also, if you use specialty products like Avon or Mary Kay, you might want to make those orders now.  Any prescription medication you might need?  Better refill ahead of time!
• Time for a haircut:  Now some people can get into their hairdresser really quickly, but it might be wise to go ahead and make that appointment now to get the hair trimmed up a few days before leaving on vacation.  Ladies, if you're like me, maybe make it closer to a week before vacation so you have time to get used to the new do.
• Looking at the details:  If you're old-school, like me, you like to have print outs of all of your vacation documents.  Airfare, reservations, dining ressies, etc. are all good things to print out and put in a folder to take with you on vacation.  Or, if you like using a travel app, such as trip it, maybe it's time to update that, or become more familiar with the application you are wanting to test out.

Well, that's just the first few things on my list.  Stay tuned to see what I get accomplished and what gets added to the vacation preparations.  Only 25 days....WOO HOO!!!

We're Too Excited To Sleep

When was the last time you experienced child-like enthusiasm?  Do you even remember?  I was thinking about this a few nights ago as I was realizing that I was only 7 days away from the 180 day mark to make dining reservations for my upcoming Disney vacation.  Just the idea that I get to make those reservations makes me smile from ear to ear.  And it's even more exciting because this trip is unique in that I get to be the one to share Disney with my 7 year old nephew for the very first time!  He will never again see Disney for the first time.  And I get the privilege of showing it to him.  Now I will get some help from my son and my mom, who are going with us, but Aunt Mendy is the "Disney expert" and according to my mom, probably the only one who will be able to keep up with Ari once the magic kicks in! 

Of course, just thinking about her comment reminds me of the Disney vacation I took with my mom a few years ago, just the two of us.  There are so many things I treasure about that trip:  surprising her with lunch in Cinderella Castle, showing her Animal Kingdom & Hollywood Studios for the very first time, and crying happy tears together while watching Dream Along With Mickey.  But probably one of my favorite moments came when we had breakfast together at Tusker House.  As the last of the characters passed our table, my mom looked at me and said, "It's like you're a little girl again when you're here."  She recognized the way Disney affects me and brings me back to that child-like enthusiasm. 

If you still aren't certain what that looks like, let me ask you if you remember this particular Walt Disney World vacation commercial:

 Have you ever been too excited to sleep?  I have.  Mainly before Disney vacations!  But there have been other times in my life that I've had that much excitement, so much enthusiasm that sleeping was not an option.

So now I'm about to tackle trip planning and dining reservations with a renewed enthusiasm, knowing that my nephew is depending on me to give him the most magical introduction to Walt Disney World possible.  But my goal is to tackle even more parts of my life with the same type of enthusiasm.  Think of what your life would be like if every task you undertook you approached with that huge smile on your face.  Would your days be more enjoyable?  What would everyone around you think?  How would it affect them?  Child-like enthusiasm is contagious.  It can change the mood of an entire room.  Experiment with it and see how you can change the world around you with a simple change to your attitude.  And think of how much more joyful your life can be when you attack each thing on your to-do list with the excitement that you do your 180 day Disney dining reservations!