Disney Count Down #1 Magic Bands

So you can call me crazy (I do), but we are taking the girls to Disney World this Fall. We took my oldest when she was just 2 years old, because I told the hubby we would take her before she had a sibling. That being said my last 2 trips at Disney World I have been 5 months pregnant each time!

This time I want to make the trip as special as it was 2.5 years ago. So of course I have been all over Pinterest looking for ideas. We picked out our Magic Band colors already. The girls are getting pink and yellow (will match the Princess Dresses they favor for the Princess Dinner), but I wanted to make them a little more special, when I found these! Personalized monograms for the bands! And in Princess and Minnie I had to get them:)

They came packaged so nicely and with a great instruction card.

When are Magic Bands showed up I was ready to get started right away. I was a little nervous because the instructions seemed so simple. But I got started with my supplies

Decal, band, and credit card to rub it on

All rubbed on with the top still in place....ready to remove...

 

And its off! They look amazing and truly are super easy to do. 

I did the second one and put them both back in the box

Then I went back online and ordered ones for EVERYONE else in our group! These make the bands so much more personal. Please check out Emily's site to order all types of fun items at great prices.

***No compensation was received for this post, I truly just loved her products and the price is amazing!  

Disney Parks Moms Panel

Calling all Disney experts and passionate trip planners! 

Do you know the prime spot for watching fireworks at the Magic Kingdom? Do your friends come to you for the inside scoop on the best breakfast Mickey has to offer?  You could be the next member of the 2016 Disney Parks Moms Panel!    

Now in its eighth year, the Disney Parks Moms Panel is seeking bilingual panelists and savvy world travelers to join their online forum, where guests can get tips and insights from real parents like you, who have mastered the art of planning a Disney vacation. Now offered in English, Spanish, French and Portuguese, the culturally-rich program is easily adapted for Disney Parks' visitors from across the globe, providing the tools they need to plan a trip to the most magical place on earth!

 

From recommendations on where to grab a bite to eat to where to stop and shop 'til you drop, these panelists are well-equipped to not only help plan a trip to the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida, but also answer questions about Disneyland Resort, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, Disney and ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex and more.

 

The Disney Parks Moms Panel plays an integral role in helping families create lifelong Disney memories. As they continue to grow stronger each year, all they need is faith, trust, a little bit of pixie dust and perhaps, YOU!

 

How to Apply

Disney Parks will accept applications for the 2016 Disney Parks Moms Panel from 10 a.m. ET onSeptember 8, 2015 through September 15, 2015 at 12:00 p.m. ET. Those interested should visitwww.momspanelsearch.com to enter. The application process includes a series of written questions and submissions, with the final round in the form of a brief phone interview. Once the search is complete, the top candidates will be officially announced as members of the Disney Parks Moms Panel in January 2016. Panelists must be available to attend a training session at Walt Disney World Resort in December 2015.

** I was not compensated for this post, The Disney Parks Moms Panel information has been provided by Disney Parks.

Disney Food

Hubby and I always travel with a food plan. We also have places we want to try and things we want to eat when we are away, and Disney was no exception. Since our resort was so close to Downtown Disney, we planned to eat many meals there. Our first stop was Earl of Sandwich, a favorite from a trip to Vegas years ago. Hubby and I split a Veggie sandwich (Feta Cheese, Lettuce, Roma Tomato, Cucumber, Red Onion, Roasted Red Peppers & Mediterranean Dressing) and a Hawaiian BBQ (Grilled Chicken, Roasted Ham, Hawaiian BBQ Sauce, Aged Swiss Cheese & Fresh Pineapple). I also got a Chocolate Banana Smoothie

Both sandwiches had amazing flavor but both Hubby and I agreed the Veggie was the best we have had. 

While walking around Downtown Disney, we went into Goofy’s Candy Shop where I got a Mickey Rice Krispie Treat covered in Reese’s Pieces and Chocolate! For $5 I had to get this treat which lasted me most of the week!

Here is my treat being made:

Into the chocolate, then the pieces are pushed on

And white chocolate on top

This was messy to eat, but so good!

We went to Cat Cora’s restaurant on our second night, and enjoyed multiple appetizers split between the two of us. 

It was so good, but I was too hungry once we got there to take pictures of the food, sorry

We knew one day we needed to check out Raglan Road Irish Pub for the Hubby! I enjoyed the fish and chips, while Hubby had a chicken and mushroom pie.

We had to get in a little Cinco de Mayo celebration on vacation and had burritos at the Magic Kingdom. Here is my black bean burrito.

Our final night away we finished at the parks early and went back to the room to figure out what to do for dinner. After checking out the options and wanting to try something new, we decided on the T-Rex. Hubby was craving a burger and the menu looked pretty fun.

We got a fairly quick seat at the octopus bar in front of the fish tank.

I ordered the Paleonzoic Chicken Sandwich (Fried pizza dough with grilled chicken, lettuce, bacon, pepper jack cheese, avocado, tomato and lemon aioli). I will be honest the fried pizza dough kinda sold me. This sandwich was awesome. I was not that hungry and had not planned to eat the whole thing but it was so good I could not stop. I would recommend checking this place out next time you go to Disney.

Overall Hubby and I had a great week of eats at the parks.

Do you travel with a meal plan or just wing it?

Babymoon at Disney

Hubby and I like to take a vacation each year. We find it to be a good chance to reconnect and take time for us. This year with Baby Girl on the way we knew it was as important as ever to take some us time. So off to Disney we headed!

We stayed at Saratoga Springs Resort and had a great week at the parks. It was actually really relaxing and the perfect break from the baby craziness we both needed. We love to stay in the villas like this because you get a kitchen to have food in the room. We like to eat breakfast in the room and not be rushed in the mornings.

 

We spent time at Epcot

Enjoyed the HGTV Flower Displays in the park

Had Baby Girl “meet” Pooh and Tigger

Ate most our meals at Downtown Disney (more to come on those)

Had a cocktail by the pool

 

It was non-alcoholic relax people

And enjoyed a Mickey Pop at the Magic Kingdom

It was a very “magical” trip and we both had a great time.

Chelsea Market

Hubby and I have had a list of local places we wanted to visit together since we moved back to the area, and have slowly been crossing places off the deleting them from the Blackberry list. The last place on that list was Chelsea Market. It is important to note that Hubby and I have always loved the Food Network, so Chelsea Market was a natural place for us. On a recent trip to New York City we decide it was time to take the subway down to Chelsea and see the Market. 

Check out the super fun map at the door.

Since it was lunchtime we started with food. First stop was Hale and Hearty for some soup. Hubby had a sweet corn chowder (A creamy flavorful chowder loaded with fresh corn right off the cob and freshly diced potatoes)  and I had a special for the day fish chowder. Both had the most amazing taste and neither seemed as heavy as a chowder normally does. Because we could not pick one place we got some bread for me and a grilled cheese for Hubby from Amy's Bread. The bread was amazing, and we even got to see them making it in the store!

After lunch we walked all around the market. We stopped by The Filling Station to try some oils, vinegars, and salts.

Espresso Salt please!

They had a cocoa vinegar that Hubby pointed out would be great on strawberries. Then it was over to Manhattan Fruit Exchange. Check out this awesome selection:

We had to be tourist and get a picture (thanks to the in-laws who meet up with us for lunch for taking it!)

Then our final stop, Eleni’s Bakery, where I got a cupcake to go I got a Chocolate Ganache topped chocolate cupcake with buttercream filling.

The top of this cupcake was AMAZING everything I had hoped for. The bottom was a little dry, but I really only ever want the top so I was quiet happy.

*Side note how cute is the little cupcake contained that held my cupcake in place through the subway, 2 train rides, and in the car home!

Have you been to Chelsea Market? What was your favorite place? Hands down it was Hale and Hearty for us, the soup was out of this world good! Hope to go back to one sometime soon!

England part 3

Our London/England vacation ended with a wedding! Since we decided to not all take pictures at the wedding I do not have a ton of pictures yet, but I wanted to share some of them. We stayed at this amazing hotel outside of London for the wedding. View from our room:

And how pretty was this chandelier?

 We had dinner with the family the night before the wedding (there is no rehearsal dinner in England), Hubby and I ready for dinner

On Saturday before the wedding we started the day with English Breakfast then walked around town before heading to the wedding. Kim and the twins, how cute are they!

Giving away the bride, how amazing is the dress, Sharon's mother-in-law made for her!

Hubby's reading

Sharon and Gavin's first dance!

The wedding was so great and the perfect way to end out vacation! We had an awesome time and everything was so nice. We left the next morning after a great trip and some even better memories and maybe some chocolate that made it in the suitcase....

English candy is so much better then the stuff we get here, we had to stock up!

Thanks to everyone who made this an awesome trip!

England part 2

The next part of our trip (part 1 here) took us to Hubby's godparent's house and to do some site-seeing in London. I have never been to London, so this part was most exciting for me!

Here is a picture of the room Auntie Jill and Uncle Derek had us in. I loved the colors and just had to take a picture.

Tuesday Hubby and I had planned to take a Bus Tour around the city. This gave us the chance to see everything and save our legs a bit (and not ride the Underground all day). We used The Original London  Tour and even saved some money (which I love) thanks to Auntie Jill sending us the 2 for 1 information from the National Railway in London. Here was the fun open double decker bus we played on all day.

We started the tour at Trafalgar Square

 and rode around until we got to the Hyde Park stop. 

Then we headed to a must see stop for me Harrod's!

And right to the Food Halls we went!

The Bakery

Fruits and veggies...so yummy looking

We ended a photo-op with the Harrod's Bear

Then headed back to the park to enjoy our purchase

Yummy mid-morning snack. The past Nigella Lawson's house

And on to Buckingham Palace

Then we hit some rain around Westminster Abbey

And Big Ben

The rain cleared by St. Paul's Cathedral (apparently that is what London is like)

Then it was over Tower Bridge

 and time for lunch before our cruise on the Thames. I got this awesome smoked salmon salad at a little place near the Tower of London.

 We ended our day on a cruise on the Thames River and got some amazing photos of the city since it was almost high tide. Here are a few:

 Wednesday with a little huge push from my in-laws, we joined them on the London Eye. Here is the thing, I am not really afraid of heights but for some reason a Ferris Wheel scares me to death, so I was not overly excited to go on the Eye. That being said I gave in because my father-in-law can be quite convincing. We got there early and got right on, Hubby and I did our self portraits we love...

And up we went

As scared as I was, this was an amazing experience and I am so glad I did it. Here are some pictures, but they do not even show how AMAZING this was. If you are in London, it is worth the money, I promise!

Then it was on the Underground

and over to the Tower of London and to see the Crown Jewels. 

 Thanks to my in-laws for a wonderful day in London!

The night ended with some yummy Fish and Chips (I love these especially when in England!)

The rest of our time in London was spent seeing family and sending time with Auntie Jill and Uncle Derek. Thanks again for letting us stay with you!

Oh yeah and I got some Sticky Toffee pudding!

What it made a great afternoon snack!