Shara, Author at Palmettos and Pigtails

Potty Training Around the Campfire {From the Archives}

May 22, 2013 posted by Shara

In honor of our beginning attempts at potty-training Millie this week, and of camping-worthy weather, here’s a peek back into the archives on how we did potty training while camping!

So in September, we started thinking about potty-training. We hadn’t previously thought about it, but then all of the sudden Jayna took an interest in accompanying us for every one of our restroom needs. She was very interested. So, we started the process….buying the miniature potty, stickers, books, yada yada. We haven’t really pushed the issue, especially since I wasn’t sure how to potty train Jayna while still keeping my eyes on the ever-busy little boy I watch everyday. So we stalled. Until last week. Because of Thanksgiving, I was relieved of my babysitting duties from Wednesday through Sunday, so I thought, “This, is the perfect time!.” So from then on, every 30 minutes we potty-trained. It was going very well, until Dave and I decided to go camping.

Yes, camping. Yes, potty training while camping. And no, contrary to (Dave’s) opinion, I am not crazy. We packed up the car and drove to Santee State Park where we pitched our tent, lit a campfire, fished, and pottied in the back of the truck every 30 minutes!!! It actually was great, other than being a tad cold (30 degrees that night!!). It was the perfect setting to do all things potty….there were no distractions and any activities we wanted to do (i.e. fishing, playgrounding, campfiring, stick-finding), could be accomplished within that 30 minute time frame before the timer went off. So, all in all, I would highly recommend the Potty Training While Camping Method!Yes, here she is on the potty in the back of the truck! You just need a timer, a potty, some blankets {for privacy!}, a few books and snacks, and LOTS of spare clothes!!Proud Girl!!Have you potty trained in a creative way? I need more ideas now that Millie is ready! Leave me a comment!

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Filed Under: Life, Tutorials

Coffee With A Side of Bloggy Boot Camp

May 20, 2013 posted by Shara

Blog Conference, take two!

Remember when I went to Blissdom last year? Well, since they moved it all the way out to Texas this year, I was stuck looking for another {closer} conference to at which to hone my blogging skills. Enter, Bloggy Boot Camp Blog Conference, put on by the SITS Girls in Charlotte, NC.

When I first arrived at the Doubletree in Charlotte, I just took a minute {or an hour} to appreciate. In general. I appreciate my husband for being Mr. Mom this weekend. I appreciate the not-as-long-as-I-thought-it’d-be drive from Charleston, in which I listened to anything but Raffi. I appreciated my humungous hotel room and the ability to pee by myself. And I appreciated the SITS girls for giving me an excuse to hang out with 100 of my newest Bloggy Boot Camp friends.

Friday night, there was a cocktail hour sponsored by Collective Bias. Now, if you know me at all, you know that walking into a room full of women I don’t know is, well…pretty much my worst nightmare. But {after a big gulp of wine}, I got up the courage to introduce myself to a few of the ladies, and we ended up having a fabulous time getting to know each other! We even drove into the town for some late night snacks and cocktails!

Saturday morning started AWESOME. And that would be because of our Keurig Brew Over Ice sponsor. They had this amazing iced coffee set-up and provided all the mid-morning caffeine I could drink (including a few non-coffee drinks like Snapple flavors!). It was delish. And it gave me {many} chances to pee all by myself.And I just may have to get one of these puppies since they sent us home with reusable Keurig mugs and K-cups!And because of the coffee, I did actually learn a lot at Bloggy Boot Camp. Tiffany Romero, one of the SITS girls, was our host….or should I say MC? She cracked us all up while inspiring us to be creative, original, and ambitious. All while literally spewing out inspirational quotes left and right. Here are a few of my favorites! Feel free to pin!There were also workshops on blog design, SEO, Google+, Social Media, and taking photos. It was exactly what I needed….a little bit of the basics regarding everything technical. I HIGHLY recommend this conference for newbie bloggers, or for any ‘ole blogger who doesn’t know her SEO from her meta data {I know what both of those things are now!!!}.

And we learned not to even bother using grainy cell phone photos on blog posts…terrible for SEO and pinnability. {is that a word?}

Ooops.I remember being so stressed about what I should wear to Blissdom…it was my first conference and I had no idea what to expect from the 400 odd women there. Bloggy Boot Camp was different. There were only about 100 people there, and all of them were relatively new to the field…and extremely approachable. I didn’t even blink about attire….I didn’t even pack any extra in-case-that-shirt-wasn’t-cool-enough clothes.

Maybe I’m growing as a person and a {semi} confident blogger?

Either way, I made some great friends this weekend. I had a ton in common with these girls…and because they were all bitty-blogs too, we were ALL looking for some new networking and friends. In fact, I learned that close-knit groups of bloggers are called Tribes. Do you think all Tribes are a goofy as we are?

Collective Bias had us stretching awkwardly at Bloggy Boot Camp

Laurel from heartofwander.com and I hung out most of the weekend. Future Tribe member perhaps?

Who snuck that terrible awkward picture on my blog??!?!?! Collective Bias had us taking photos of “awkward” stretches with their pillow. And apparently I was the most awkward stretcher at the conference, because I won a $200 gift card for my pose! I think that deserves a badge for my sidebar, what do you think?

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Filed Under: Blogging Basics

Charleston Style Shrimp & Grits

May 16, 2013 posted by Shara

One of my favorite things about the South is its food. There is nothing like some good Southern grub. And Charleston is the hub for fantastic restaurants with world renowned chefs. One of my very favorite Southern dishes is Shrimp and Grits. There are many different takes on this dish, but I think I’ve found {and tweaked} the best one! Here’s my version of the Allrecipes.com attempt.Ingredients:

2c of grits
4c of water
2c of half and half
salt to taste
2 c shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

2 lbs of uncooked shrimp, peeled/deveined and tails off
1 pinch of Cayenne pepper
juice from 1 lemon
1 package of cooked turkey breakfast sausage (sliced or crumbled)
5 slices of raw bacon
1 green, red, and yellow pepper, each chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/4 c butter
1/4c all purpose flour
1c chicken broth
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Instructions:

Gather ingredients.Cook the bacon until crispy, saving the bacon grease. Cool the bacon and crumble it. Put aside. Cook the peppers, onion and garlic in the bacon grease over medium low heat for about 5 minutes.In a separate bowl, mix the raw shrimp with the lemon juice, a bit of salt and a pinch of Cayenne pepper. Set aside.In a separate small skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the flour and use a whisk to stir almost constantly until mixture is almost a paste. Keep stirring and cooking for about 8-10 minutes until the mixture is a caramel color. (Darker than the picture below!)Add the turkey and raw shrimp to the vegetable mixture, and cook until the shrimp is pink. Add the flour/butter mixture to the veggie mix. Cook everything together for about 6 minutes over medium low. Turn it to low and keep warm while you cook the grits.To cook the grits, bring the water, salt, and half and half to a boil. Add the grits and cook on medium until creamy, stirring often.I also made crescent rolls to have with dinner. Jayna helped roll them up!This recipe was a big hit at Rachele’s baby shower, and now at our house too!I think I’ll make it again next time we have a houseful…..it serves about 6 as a main dish!!

Filed Under: Recipes

Happy Mother’s Day

May 12, 2013 posted by Shara

Happy Mother’s Day! Hopefully reading this post is just a quick break from your day of surprises and appreciation from your hubby and kids! Or maybe you are celebrating your own mom today. Either way, enjoy your day!

Proud Mama Moments

May 10, 2013 posted by Shara

Can I just brag on my girl for a minute? Jayna is four now, and all the sudden {it seems}, has turned into this adventurous little girl! I mean, she has always been smart, and vocal, and independent. But lately, I’ve just been so proud of her! Last week was the first week of ballet, in which she entered the class in the middle of the session, not knowing anyone or any of the dance steps. Did it phase her? Not a bit! She made friends immediately, and caught on to every plié and curtsy!And this week, she started gymnastics. Anything that requires her wearing a “ballerinatard” will make her squeal with joy, so I had high hopes for gymnastics as well. Again, she bounded into the session with the enthusiasm of an Olympic gymnast…bouncing backwards on the trampoline, doing somersaults, and balancing on the HIGH beam. She even was brave enough to attempt a flip on the double bars!And today, I finally got to attend Muffins with Mom at school {usually, we are in MD during May, so this is the first one I’ve gotten to go to!}. Call me emotional, but I was on the edge of tears for the entire thing! The whole class got up and sang several Mother’s Day songs. And contrary to popular belief, Jayna is quite the little performer and sang right to me…hand motions and all! Then, we were presented with our gifts, a candle holder and a couple of handprint poems. Lovely! What a great kid!

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Filed Under: Life

Strawberry Fields Forever

May 8, 2013 posted by Shara

Before Monsoon Season hit us last week {it literally has not stop raining in 10 days…}, we had a beautiful, warm day. The perfect kind of day to go strawberry picking! It was so much better this year than last year, when my poor aching back was carrying baby Millie around in the front pack. This year, they both got in on the strawberry fun!Amelia was mostly interested in running up and down the rows of strawberries {stepping on as many strawberries as possible, I’m sure!},while Jayna claimed her arms and legs were too tired for strawberry picking. Lazy bones!Finally, I got them interested in picking by making it a contest to see who could pick {and NOT eat!} the most strawberries.

I think it was a tie!

How to Support a Blogger You Love

May 6, 2013 posted by Shara

I’ve been blogging for over two years now! Crazy huh? I feel like I have come a long way in my posts…..I’m branching out, trying new things {and then blogging about them!}. Hopefully, you are still enjoying what I write! What started out as an easy way to post stories and pics about the kids for my family, has morphed into my passion and my second job. And I LOVE my readers! I get giddy when I get a notification of a new subscriber, or see a new “like” on my Facebook page. And I literally jump for joy at each and every comment I get {even from you, Mom!}! And I try hard to stay connected with my devoted followers…..I try to reply to comments, answer emails and interact with you on Facebook and Twitter.

And still, it’s hard to get more followers….especially without posting shamelessly about how to support your local blogging mommy! But, then again, even I’m still learning, so I know that some of you don’t know how easy it is to support me Mommy Bloggers. In a nutshell, advertisers look at numbers….subscribers, Facebook page “likes”, Twitter followers, etc. They even look at how many pages each of my viewers look at, and how long they stay on each page. Complicated stuff, but every little bit helps! Here are four quick ways you can help!

Read my posts and give me feedback:

I know I blog about a variety of things {family, Disney, crafts, DIY, recipes, etc.}, I’d love it if you’d read {or at least scan} my posts. And let me know if there is something you’d like me to write about.. Love or hate a topic? Let me know! You can email me or leave me a comment on my blog or Facebook page. I love my readers and want to continue writing content that’s relevant to you!
In addition to me learning more about what you like to read about, the more comments you leave on my blog or on my Facebook Page, the more “activity” the blog world says I have, which leads to more sponsorships, more readers and hopefully more money down the line! Easy-peasy!
And finally, subscribe! You can click on the “subscribe” button {right under my picture on the right sidebar of my blog}, to add each of my posts to your RSS feed. Or, you can click on “email” to sign up to get an email from me each time I post {generally, Monday/Wednesday/Friday}. This is convenient in order to get the latest post, but when you read my whole post on your email, it doesn’t give me credit for your view, so if you can, it’s always better to click to get to my actual webpage to read the post.

Spread the word! Tell your friends about awesome blogs you find! Encourage them to subscribe by email or RSS:

Share: When you see a blog post show up on your Facebook news feed, hit SHARE, and it will go on your newsfeed too (which will let new people potentially read the post as well). If you have Twitter, RETWEET blog posts that you love. If you have Pinterest, please PIN and REPIN my posts and pictures.
At the end of every post I write, there are buttons for Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest, click on any and/or all of those buttons to easily share the post with others.

Enter contests and giveaways….even if you don’t want the SWAG:

I can’t speak for others, but I appreciate each and every entry I have for a giveaway. Usually, giveaways are held in conjunction with a company or brand that has sought me out. The more people that participate {and get exposed to the brand} the happier that brand is with me….and will be more likely to want to work with me again!
Even if you aren’t interested in the prize, feel free to enter anyway….if you happen to win, just let me know you don’t want it, so someone else can win it! Again, the more entries there are in the giveaway, the happier the brand is with me!

Support my affiliates:

Just to let you know, I spend between 2-4 hours a day working on blog-related work. Between editing pictures, writing original blog posts, scheduling those posts to be advertised on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and Pinterest, researching future blog topics, answering blog-related emails, and actually creating and executing those recipes and crafts that I write about……it takes up a lot of time. Time I generally don’t get paid for.
Don’t get me wrong, I love it, and still do it even when I don’t get paid. But, obviously, I’d rather have something in it for me! Cue advertisers and affiliates here.
When you see the words like “sponsor”, “affiliate”, “advertisers”, etc. on your favorite blog, it means that if you click on one of those links or pretty pictures, the blogger will most likely get something in return. Quite often, a check! Same for the ads you see on our sidebars….if you see something that strikes your fancy, by all means, click on the box! We get paid by clicks.
Giveaways, reviews and feature articles are either paid for by sponsors, or the blogger is getting something from the sponsor. For example, when I worked with Smart Balance Kids, I advertised for them on my sidebar, got paid when you clicked, got milk samples to try and review, and got coupons to give away to YOU, my readers! Bloggers will rarely advertise for free, so help a Mama out by checking out all of the advertising!

{source}

So, hopefully you read {at least} my first tip, and skimmed down to this point….bottom line, bloggers want more readers to get their voice out there, so please help us out by sharing the blogs you love with your friends! Help us get a tiny bit of compensation for our time by checking out our sponsors. And send us some love {even if just in a comment}! We love you too!

{Look below to see the buttons that oh-so-conveniently allow you to SHARE this!} Thanks!

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Filed Under: Blogging Basics, Tutorials

{Walt Disney World} The Wrap Up

May 3, 2013 posted by Shara

Are you all Disney-ed out? We kinda are. In the we-just-had-a-fabulous-vacation-and-now-back-to-real-life kind of way. So I thought I’d do one final post with some of our pictures and some final thoughts and observations about the parks, hotel and trip. So pardon the sweaty pictures of my kids (Tip#1…it’s still HOT in Florida in April!)!

Part 1: The Hotel

So, if you remember, we stayed at Wyndham Bonnet Creek, which is about 3 miles from any and all of the Disney Parks…including Downtown Disney and Disney Boardwalk. We rented our specific condo from Farrell’s Vacation Rentals, and were VERY impressed with the unit and all of the amenities that were included for just over $100 a night (two bedroom unit that slept 8). Our regret was that we didn’t spend more time at the resort….tons of kids’ activities, 5 pools., mini-golf, 2 lazy rivers, a kiddie splash pad, etc. Next time we go, we’ll prob spend more time at the pool {especially the pirate ship themed one!}! The shuttle to Disney Parks does cost $5 a head though, but we wouldn’t have used it anyway because we didn’t want to have to wait around for the scheduled shuttle pick-ups, and you can’t bring strollers on!! And we definitely needed a stroller! So, we used A Baby’s Best Friend to rent a double jogger and a booster highchair for the hotel. Once again, we were thrilled. It cost a total of $75 for both for the entire week, including delivery and pick-up to the resort. The items were clean and worked perfectly for the parks. I highly recommend them!

Part 2: The Parks

Hollywood Studios

We followed all the advice I found online and went straight to Toy Story {AWESOME ride!}….we walked right on and also grabbed a Fast Pass to ride again a couple of hours later. Woody and Buzz were signing autographs in an air-conditioned room across from Toy Story…a 30 minute wait that went fast, thanks to some interactive areas in the line. The girls also unexpectedly liked The Studio BackLot Tour {which shows how they create the special effects stunts in movies}….lots of loud {explosions} noises, some fire, and an adventurous tram ride all led to a display of props from various movies. It was the first kind of “scary” thing we did, but it was a great way to explain how Disney makes everything LOOK real. Some new vocab words {props, sets, stunts, illusions, special effects} helped Jayna cope later with other intense rides like Haunted Mansion. Regrets? We didn’t get to do any “grown-up” rides! I would have loved to try out Rockin’ Roller Coaster!

Don’t Miss: Honey I Shrunk the Kids Playground….great place for shade and rest for mom/dad and slides and climbing for all ages!

Gifts for this park: Autograph Books and Waterbottles

Hollywood Studios Tips from Palmettos and Pigtails

Toy Story at Hollywood Studios from Palmettos and Pigtails

3D Glasses on Toy Story Ride from Palmettos and Pigtails

Animal Kingdom

This park was such a pleasure to just walk around in. The girls loved looking at all of the details in each of the continents. And even though we packed lunches, I really appreciated the culturally {and vegetarian friendly} diverse food choices throughout the park. Dave and I used Child Swap and Fast Passes for Expedition Everest, and then went to the safari early in the day, when we had heard that the animals were more active. Not sure if I agree with the activity level of the animals, but the lines were certainly shorter. Jayna loved the Kali River Rapids {which I actually thought were kind of lame and a very short ride!}, because she LOVED seeing me get soaked! A nice perk was The Boneyard, where Jayna and Amelia both had appropriate-sized playground equipment to play on. We also managed to catch Minnie and Mickey in their camp gear {and shorter lines than MK} for an autograph.

Don’t Miss: Finding Nemo {the show}. Broadway caliber…..so entertaining for everyone!

Gifts for this park: Little Towels {for water rides}

Camp Minnie Mickey at Animal Kingdom from Palmettos and Pigtails

The Boneyard at Animal Kingdom from Palmettos and Pigtails

Expedition Everest at Animal Kingdom from Palmettos and Pigtails

Animal Kingdom tips from Palmettos and Pigtails

Epcot

We got there for their “soft opening” around 8:45 and went directly to the Finding Nemo ride and Turtle Talk with Crush….very cool, but we didn’t have a chance to see the rest of the aquarium features because we had to head over to breakfast with the princesses in Norway. We ended up paying $120 for a buffet breakfast for three {Mills was free}, but had fantastic extended meets with Ariel, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella. In the price, the little girls got to parade around the castle, and we also got our photo taken with Belle….getting one 8×10 and four 5X7′s of that photo. It was a great experience.

Don’t Miss: The International Flower & Garden Festival in the Spring {topiaries all through the park}, and the Oz-themed playground

Gift for this park: I wrapped up some princess dress up clothes for them to wear to breakfast

Princesses at Character Breakfast at Disney from Palmettos and Pigtails

Breakfast at Epcot with the Princesses from Palmettos and Pigtails

Topiaries at Epcot from Palmettos and Pigtails

Tips for Epcot from Palmettos and Pigtails

Oz-themed Playground at Epcot from Palmettos and Pigtails

Magic Kingdom

Three words: Belle’s Enchanted Tales. Run there. It’s an awesome, interactive {as in ALL kids get a part!}, magical show and meet with Belle. And it’s HUGELY popular. As in hours long wait and no shade. Get it done first, before anything else! We got in line while Dave ran and got Fast Passes for Peter Pan or Splash Mountain. As for Splash Mountain…child swap is a must! And the shaded playground for the Littles while you wait, is also a great perk {located under the railroad station}. My girls aren’t a huge fan of fireworks, but we found we could literally walk onto rides while the Electrical Parade and Fireworks shows were on. Also, hope for rain {it cools things off and scares people away…easing up the lines!}. The oh-so-popular Electrical Parade starts on Main Street {where most gather to watch on their way out of the park} and ends in Frontier Land….we found the least crowded spot to be on the porch of Country Bear Jamboree, where the parade passes by starting at 9:20pm. Jayna ended up riding on Haunted Mansion twice….and I attribute her bravery to watching youtube videos of the ride. We walked on both times, so we didn’t even get to play with the new interactive activities in line!

Don’t Miss: The Little Mermaid Ride….we rode on it multiple times, and the wait is just as entertaining as the ride {and in the AC!}

Gifts for this park: Glowsticks and Spinny Princesses for the Parades, Minnie Mouse Ears {for pictures mostly!}

People Mover at Magic Kingdom from Palmettos and Pigtails

Waiting at Enchanted Tales with Belle at Magic Kingdom from Palmettos and Pigtails

Tips for Magic Kingdom from Palmettos and Pigtails

After the Vacation: Tips for Traveling to Disney from Palmettos and Pigtails

Part 3: The Schedule

We actually stayed pretty true to the itinerary that I created. And I think the order of the parks worked perfectly for us! Jayna turned out to be kind of an adrenaline junky, so going to see the shows at Hollywood Studios on the first day was a score for us {as I’m sure she would have been bored by them after the thrill of Splash Mountain!}. Another great perk was the multiple opportunities to use the 3D glasses! We got Fast Passes for all the rides we HAD to ride, and were able to time lunch and bathroom breaks around the wait times, so the girls never really waited more than like 30 minutes at any of the parks. We packed sandwiches and lots of snacks, and frozen waterbottles….and ate in the strollers while waiting in line or walking. Not only did it save money, but time!

We got to all the parks by opening {9:00am}, with Hollywood Studios doing a soft opening at 8:45 {park was open, but rides didn’t open until 9…Fast Pass machines were running at 8:45 though!}. But I seriously underestimated how long it took to get into Magic Kingdom, between parking, trams, and Ferry/Monorail. We got to the parking lot at 9am the first MK day {along with everyone else} and it took us an hour an a half to get into the park and get to Fantasyland {our first destination}. So, the second MK day we were parking by 8am, and were at the park entrance by 8:45 {rope drop} and getting to Fantasyland by 9:00. Get there early! And bring stuff to entertain the kids in the stroller while you wait for parks to open {i.e. bubbles, spray fans, etc.}

Thursday, we took the day off from parks, and went to Downtown Disney instead. And it proved to be just as entertaining as the parks! We hit the Lego Store, two toy stores {where we picked up the coveted Disney-themed Mr. Potato Head accessories}, a couple of fountains and had lunch. And that took up most of the day! That night, Dave and I were able to sneak away with Bets and Jay for a grown-ups night out. We went to Disney Boardwalk and had dinner and strolled on the boardwalk. Nothing there for Littles, but it was great for a double date!

What a wonderful vacation!

Miss one of my other Disney Posts?

Mr. Mickey Mouse Head Felt Bag from Palmettos and Pigtails

Mr. Mickey Mouse Head Felt Bags

Mickey Mouse Travel Ticket from Palmettos and Pigtails

Mickey Mouse Travel Ticket (and other vacation travel tips and goodies)

Disney Princess Wand Tutorial

Get your kids pumped for your Disney vacation with these Disney Activities!

Disney Countdown Chain

Secrets of the Kingdom: A Collection of Walt Disney World Tips

Walt Disney World: A Mom with a Plan

Filed Under: Life, Travel

May Cleaning Calendar

May 1, 2013 posted by Shara

Happy May! Have the flowers bloomed by you yet? We are still “enjoying” April showers. Every. Day. Ugh. Looking forward to some nicer weather this month! Happy Cleaning!

Click here for the downloadable document. Please PIN this and SHARE on Facebook! =)

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Filed Under: Calendars and Organization

{Walt Disney World} Notes for Preggo Travel: A Guest Post

April 29, 2013 posted by Shara

Remember I told you that we traveled to Disney with our friends, Betsy and Jay {and their lovely Lulabelle and Baby Ethel?}….and no, her name probably won’t be Ethel, but who knows?!?!?! Well, I let Bets take the reins today and give you some hints for traveling 6 months pregnant to Disney! Enjoy!My Disney vacation may be atypical from most and certainly from Shara’s in that my awesome husband took the reins of planning! We discussed everything we decided, but as you read my recap, know that I don’t take credit for the plans he came up with or our schedule. We both tried to be flexible with plans and just have fun because that’s all you can do with a 2-year-old and your in-laws in tow!

We rode with my in-laws in their RV so we were able to save money on food and stay at a campground overnight on the way to and from Florida {4 days total of travel to/from Disney from Maryland, and 6 days of Florida}.

Accommodations

We chose to stay at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Campground for a few key reasons.

We were making this trip with my in-laws and wanted to be near them to make plans to meet up and eat meals together as easy as possible. We could have all squeezed in their RV all week, but Fort Wilderness has cabins, so the three of us opted for one of those for everyone’s sanity. It was great! We really liked everything about it.

Fort Wilderness is a really nicely laid out campground that has spoiled me for campgrounds everywhere. Disney just knows how to do things right. It is expansive, interspersed beautifully with trees and wildlife so you don’t see a million RVs everywhere you look, and there is bus transportation to help you get all around, though most everyone ends up splurging on renting golf carts for the week (including my father-in-law! Even after we had planned not to splurge on renting one and sticking to the bus transport, he decided it would be well worth it for the ease of getting around, so we were fine with that!). Two great pools, several playgrounds, two well-stocked shops with lots of food and drink essentials as well as gifty Disney stuff, pony rides, a delicious buffet, and easy free transportation to all of the parks plus Downtown Disney all made it a great choice for our family. They also had an awesome campfire sing-a-long featuring Chip and Dale every night with marshmallow roasting and a movie under the stars.

Note 1. Bring your own marshmallows/s’mores stuff. They sell everything there, but its pricey!
Note 2. Go during the weekdays. We went on Wednesday night and again on Friday night (though I think some people go every night, hey its free entertainment) and Wednesday was nice and calm and peaceful while Friday was packed and slightly chaotic!The cabins can sleep up to 6 people total, so our little family of 3 was able to spread out quite nicely. The cabin had a full kitchen and one full bathroom, one bedroom with bunkbeds and a double bed, and a livingroom with a Murphy bed. Jason and I chose to sleep out on the Murphy bed so we could put Lulabelle to bed at bedtime and stay up to watch TV for awhile without disturbing her. It worked out really well. Plus we had the luxury of housekeeping everyday… that’s my kind of camping! We researched ahead of time and found that RV lots are not really intermixed with cabins in their layout, but you can call ahead to request specific areas if possible, so we so did that and got loops next to each other……ended up within walking distance to my in-law’s but not so close that we got on each others’ nerves.Parks

We also opted for the 4 tickets and got the 5^th day free, but to save money we forewent the park hopper option and just did straight days. The hopper would have been beneficial to some extent, but we didn’t really miss it.

Magic Kingdom notes:

-Be Our Guest restaurant

Ridiculous line just to get inside to eat, but I’ve decided it was worth it! Disney made the Beast’s castle look so realistic and amazing, it was really a treat to get to sit there and eat! A delicious feast for the tummy and for the eyes.
I was frustrated by the ordering process – touchscreen computers each party orders on themselves are a bad idea when a Disney staff person has to run from computer to computer helping all the people figure out how to take the accidental extra beverages off their total or swipe their credit card! But my note to poor starving preggos or people with toddlers would be to just have a little snack while in line so you’re not dead or ready to kill someone by the time you get to the ordering screens.
The meals were pricey, but in reality quite comparable to the other restaurants in the parks – 4 adult meals with drinks and one kid’s meal with milk came to $55 – and the food was really quite good – I got a quiche that came with a good-sized spinach salad and champagne vinaigrette, mmm….
The other pretty cool thing to note was the servers bringing out your food using some method of GPS or tracking to figure out exactly where your party is seated. It was done via a little red, circular rose that you take with you after ordering and set on the table you’ve chosen, and then within a few minutes a waiter comes wheeling out a fancy food cart directly to your table. When my husband asked how he knew where we were, the waiter just said “magic,” we were in an enchanted castle after all. Anyway, we sat in the main ballroom, in fancy chairs, under gorgeous chandeliers, with computer-generated snow falling outside beautiful windows – I absolutely loved it.Epcot notes:

-Nemo ride + big aquarium afterwards!

We knew about Turtle Talk with Crush after the Nemo ride, but I did not know there was a full-fledged aquarium to check out in there as well with manatees, dolphins, turtles, fish! We ended up staying in that one building for close to 2 hours even with no line to get on the Nemo ride at all!
Note: bring a snack in if you’re pregnant and hungry every half an hour.Hollywood Studios notes:

-Disney Jr. show

This was pretty much the main thing we thought Lu would want to do so we got in line early on and excitedly got front row seats inside the theater. Terrible idea. We could not see anything from the front row because they have you sit on the floor (my other bone to pick with that show – I don’t get up and down all that easily these days!) and the characters are all puppets. Most times we could see just the tops of characters’ heads, but sometimes we couldn’t see them at all when they were talking.
We also had a Disney staff member who kept making little Lu sit down when she tried to see a little better (even though in the middle rows all the kids were standing up and even though the only people she could have been blocking were her dad and grandpa). SO, aim for the center of the theater, maybe even towards the back.
And warn the grandparents and preggos in your family they’ll be sitting on the floor.

And finally, a shout-out to my shoes! I researched good, supportive sandals for walking before we left, and these are what I decided on. They are Spencos http://www.zappos.com/spenco-kholo-straw-java~1 I ordered from zappos.com, and they did a great job supporting me in all of our walking. According to the reviews, they run a little wide, which was great for me as I have slightly wide feet on a normal day and was very worried my pregnant lady feet might swell especially in the heat. They have great arch support, and I never had a day of discomfort with extended walking every day we were there. Yay!

Overall, it was a magical Disney vacation! In a nutshell, if you choose to do Disney while pregnant, make sure you wear good shoes, bring lots of water and snacks, and stay in the shade. We can’t wait to go back, or at least go on vacation with Shara and Dave again soon! Thanks for reading!

Betsy

Betsy is the cake creator over at Betsy’s Cakes, the Godmother of Jayna and Amelia, and the Mommy of Lullabelle. She’s also the wife of Jay, and lover of all things Disney. She’s also Shara’s best friend, and can be found in this post, this one, and this one. Oh yeah, she also is the mastermind behind the Super Popular Dr. Suess Party post!