DisneySMMoms | The Angel Forever

Category Archives DisneySMMoms

Destination Disney Social Media Moms Celebration 2012

Posted on May 7, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Thursday, April 26th was a busy day in our house. We woke up before the sun was shining and packed the boys and suitcases into the car. By 7:30, this was the view from our Southwest Airline plane taking us away to Orlando, Florida for the 2012 Disney Social Media Moms Celebration.

At noon, the Magical Express taking us from the airport pulled up at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort. The excitement was in the air as we were Tweeting with a few other bloggers while on the bus. After we checked into our rooms and dropped things off, it was time to head down to find the Disney Social Media Moms check in for our park tickets and schedules. On the way down, I noticed some familiar faces. I saw Suzannah, Amanda, Jackie, and Leigh. I ran down to say hello, give hugs, and then went with TechyDad, the boys, and my parents to the convention center area.

NHL was so excited to see the sign and ran ahead to show us the way to get our items. We bumped into Mary and Amy from BSM Media and Maura from Disney. Then it was time to toss things back into our room, get park tickets, and head over to Epcot for lunch. Since you can walk to Epcot via the International Gateway, TechyDad and I suggested going to France for a quick lunch. On the walk over, we saw the beach getting set up for our Pirate Soiree that evening, watched the palm trees blowing in the breeze, and saw beautiful topiaries set up for the Epcot Flower and Garden Show.

Lunch was perfect to hold us over until later on and gave us some energy to tackle some more of Epcot. The boys asked to stop in Great Britain to play in the maze there after checking out the Winnie the Pooh topiary. Then we continued to walk around World Showcase and noticed that Duffy was outside for photos. We missed him on our last trip, so it was perfect timing with a short line.

Next, we decided to go to Mexico to do one ride before heading back to the Yacht Club. It was time to sing and ride in the boat while chasing Donald Duck around.

By this time JSL was really tired and we hoped to get him to rest before the party on the beach. NHL wanted to roam more of Epcot. I said that I would walk around with him to see Figment. We wandered to Journey into Imagination.

Since we still had more time, we walked by The Land and over to The Seas with Nemo & Friends.

We walked a lot in a short amount of time and decided to take the boat back to the Yacht Club. When I got back, TechyDad and I had about an hour to get ready to make it to the Cocktail Welcome.

So much more to share coming soon. Next up, the Welcome Cocktail party and Swashbucklers Soiree.

Categories:
Blogging Conference bloggy friends Conference Disney DisneySMMoms family jsl me moments nhl photos TechyDad travel vacation

Smartphone Charging Solution

Posted on May 6, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

As a blogger who just finally entered the world of Smartphone ownership, I knew that keeping my phone charged when out and about would be critical. I have often seen other bloggers at events running around to find an outlet to plug in their phone. With Disney Social Media Moms Celebrations, TechyDad and I knew that we would challenge our phones. The reality is that Violet, my Droid Bionic, does not keep her battery charged for a full day at home. I knew that I would be doomed at Walt Disney World.

Thanks to TechyDad doing a lot of research we finally ordered two Anker Astro 5600mAh Backup External Battery Packs and Chargers from Amazon. They arrived shortly before our trip. This gave us time to see how many times we could use them with our Bionics before we had to recharge the main unit. Here is a photo of Violet sitting on the passenger seat of my car charging while picking the kids up at school.

We quickly found out that we could get two recharges from about 15% to fully charged. What I liked was I could use the phone during the conference as it was gaining strength, it could go into my purse and gain power while waiting on lines. This is Violet on the table while waiting to hear author Ridley Pearson speak.

In a typical day, I do not have the photo opportunities that we saw in Disney World. While TechyDad had his regular camera with us, I was often busy snapping shots with my phone to send to Twitter and Facebook via Instagram. If my phone was not charged, I never would have captured these amazing memories and others.

The things we will do for our Techy Toys! All I can say is thank you, TechyDad, for finding this must have to keep my phone alive.

Disclosure: Although we paid for our own trip to Disney World to attend the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration, we were given an incredible deal from Disney. Also note that Disney never asked us to blog about this event. As a long time Disney fan, it is my pleasure to share my experiences from the event. We purchased the Anker Astro with our own money and wanted to share how it helped us while traveling.One Amazon affiliate link for the Anker Charger is included in this post. I will receive a percentage of money for the sale should you opt to buy this item.

Categories:
Blogging Conference bloggy friends Conference Disney DisneySMMoms me moments photos Product review TechyDad travel vacation

Our Disney World Family Tradition

Posted on May 5, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL and JSL,

Coming back home from a magical week at Disney World has been a tough transition for all of us. Now, we can sit down and look at all of the moments that we captured from this latest adventure to Orlando. There was the pirate party, dancing in DinoLand late at night, and checking out the Art of Animation Resort. Once the conference was over, we had some extra days to roam the four parks together.

Even a simple moment like the two of you sitting together on a Disney bus while going to a new destination melted my heart. Just three years ago, you were so little when we took you to Disney World for your first visit. Now, the two of you could lead us around the parks and tell us where you wanted to go.

What I loved was the two of you humored us to keep a tradition alive. On our last day at Disney World, we have always worn matching shirts. Both of you agreed to do this again. The best part was wearing them while two special friends before our trip was over:

Sure the heat may have gotten to all of us from time to time, but the amazing moments together is something we will always remember. For now, we will look back at these and hope to start planning another trip back one day soon.

Love,

Mommy

Categories:
brothers Dear Kid Saturday Disney DisneySMMoms family jsl milestone nhl photos travel

Laundry FastPass Requested

Posted on May 4, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Coming back from a vacation can be a reality check. After a week away, it is hard to jump into school, work, cleaning, and especially all of the laundry that accumulated over a week in this magical destination:

The last thing I want to think about is all of the dirty clothing, unused clothing, and other items sitting in these bags that need to be put away and washed. Yes, I am hereby officially demanding a FastPass to get done with laundry. For those familiar with Walt Disney World and other Disney parks, you will get that reference. For others, FastPass allows you to get a pass for a ride to come back during a specific time to ride with a minimal wait.

So my question to you this week:

How long does it usually take you to unpack, wash laundry, and put everything away after a vacation?

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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.

Aloha #201

Categories:
Aloha Friday Disney DisneySMMoms looking back me moments photos

Tuesday Tales – Disney World Post-Pearson

Posted on May 1, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

While at Disney Social Media Moms Celebration, I had the opportunity to select a breakout session. When I saw that author Ridley Pearson was going to be there, it was an easy choice.

Just over a year ago, while at Walt Disney World, I walked off Pirates of the Caribbean and noticed some books. I took a photo so I could check them out at a later date. The books were called Kingdom Keepers and they intrigued me. One year later, I have read all of the books, save for one which was just published, and I am an even bigger fan.

Now that I have read all but the latest book in the series, I look at things differently when in the parks. I imagine the characters, the places, and events. More coming soon from this day soon.

What have you read recently? Please be sure to link up to your book posts in the comments below. Include something you read on your own, with a child, or someone else. Tuesday Tales are all about spreading the love for books.