Photo Scavenger Hunt - The big list!

Sorry for the lack of posts lately - been busy getting ready for the upcoming trip! Only five more days until we arrive in the Mouse's House!


Previously, I mentioned a photo scavenger hunt idea for our upcoming trip. I've been really excited about this project! First of all, its helped kill some time before we leave. It's also set us up for great photos and some silly memories that we'll remember forever!
As promised, here is the full list of items we are hunting for. We still have a few blank pages in our book, so throw some ideas out and they'll be added!

• Find a Cast member from Chicago
• Find another couple celebrating their anniversary
• High-five 5 different cast members
• Find someone with a first visit button
• Find someone with a birthday button
• Take THREE in-ride photos at Magic Kingdom*
• Find FIFTEEN hidden Mickeys in Magic Kingdom
• Make a wish at the Castle wishing well
• Try to remove Sword in the Stone
• Silly hat photo in each of the 6 lands in Magic Kingdom
• Take THREE in-ride photos at Epcot*
• Find TEN hidden Mickeys in Epcot
• Take a photo with a Flag in each country of World Showcase
• Find the Pickle Tree in Epcot
• Take THREE in-ride photos at Animal Kingdom*
• Find TWELVE hidden Mickeys in Animal Kingdom
• Take THREE in-ride photos at Hollywood Studios*
• Find TEN hidden Mickey's in Hollywood Studios
• Find Spock's handprints outside the theater
• Sing in the Rain @ Hollywood Studios
• Show off drawings from Animation Academy
• Climb on a Giant Bug @ Hollywood Studios
• Pull the rope in the well by Indiana Jones Show
• Dance with any Character
• Minnie & Mickey's Autographs
• Dance with a Princess
• Spot the Tron-o-Rail (TRON themed Monorail)
• Take a picture with a Friendship Boat Captain
• Be alone on a Disney Bus
• Take a picture with Disney Bus Driver
• Find anything with HOCKEY on it
• Find FIVE hidden Mickeys at Coronado Springs
• Alphabet game! Find an item/sign/etc that starts with each letter of the alphabet

*All in-ride photos must follow posted rules! Take the photo on outdoor rides, or without the flash!

As you can see, we're seriously lacking in Animal Kingdom photo ideas!! Hopefully someone can help us out with that. Either way, super excited to see what pictures result from these ideas. I'm not expecting ALL of them to be completed, but hopefully we have fun and get into it!

What do you do to shake things up on your vacations?

Magical Crafting - Tie Dye Shirts

Good evening, Disney fans!

Tonight I would like to share a super fun, easy, family-friendly craft with you! When in Disney Parks, its almost expected that you wear a shirt with our favorite mouse! Unfortunately, Mickey shirts can be quite expensive...
but thanks to the DISBoards, I was able to come across this great idea for tie dying Mickey shirts!

I'll give you the quick rundown, but for full detailed instructions please visit this post on the DISBoards.

Here's what you'll need to start:

• Tshirts - 100% cotton will work best!
• Stencil of Mickey Head
• Dental floss & a Sewing Needle
• Soda Ash (find this near the tie dye kits)
• Tie Dye
• Rubberbands
• Plastic Bags
• Bleach Pen (FYI - Tide-to-go does not contain Bleach and will not work)

(sorry I don't have photos of each step... I didn't think to document the whole process)

Step 1: Trace Mickey shape on the Tshirt with a washable marker (I used crayola and it washed out great)

Step 2: Baste Stitch around the shape of Mickey with the Dental Floss - make your stitches small and close together for the best results.

Step 3: Pull both ends of the floss as tight as you can. The Mickey head will be scrunched and bunched:

Step 4: Wrap 2 rubberbands around the floss line - This will prevent dye from getting to the Mickey outline!

Step 5: Soak in Soda Ash as directed in your product's instructions - usually about 20 minutes. Ring out excess water as much as possible

Step 6: Holding onto the puckered Mickey head in the middle of your shirt, start spinning until the entire shirt is wound up into a wheel shape. Wrap rubberbands around the wheel shape (it will look like pizza slices). Be sure to pull your Mickey head up and out of the spiral before continuing.

Step 7: Squirt your desired dye color onto only the Mickey head. Be sure to fully saturate your Mickey shape or you'll end up missing an ear! Also try to not get this color on the rest of the shirt. Then, wrap only the Mickey head in plastic

Step 8: Squirt the desired colors of dyes on the rest of the shirt in the pattern you want. Again, be sure to fully saturate the shirt and squirt into all the nooks and crannies. Then, wrap the shirts in plastic bags and let them sit as directed on your tie dye instructions (I let ours sit overnight)

Step 9: Unwrap the shirts and remove rubberbands. Rinse the dye out in a sink until the water runs clear - similar to when you dye your hair! Keep rinsing and ringing the shirts out until you feel like you've gotten most of the dye out. Then throw them in the washer with just a small bit of detergent. Let the shirts dry completely before moving on.

 

You may notice that the Mickey Heads aren't super clearly defined here. If that is the case with your shirts, continue on to the optional next step. If your Mickeys are surrounded by a nice clear un-dyed outline, then you are done! :)

Step 10: Slide a piece of plastic or cardboard inside the shirt. Using the bleach pen, outline the Mickey Heads with a thin line - the bleach will spread. Let the bleach dry, then wash the shirts again and ta-da! You have finished, custom Mickey shirts for a fraction of the cost - plus tons of fun memories from making them!

 

I'm actually hoping to make a few more of these for our upcoming trip (2 weeks from tomorrow!) but we've already made a pact to not wear them on the same day as each other. Matching shirts are cute when you have little kiddos, but its just too cutesy and matchy-matchy for us ;)

Please share any fun Disney crafts you and your family like to do - whether its leading up to a trip or just because!

Have a Magical Day today!

Mickey Mail! °o°

As if planning a trip to Disney World weren't exciting enough, the folks at Disney know how to help you build even more excitement leading up to your trip. They do this with...
Mickey Mail!

At about 30 days out from your trip (basically, once Disney has your full vacation payment safely deposited) you start to receive these wonderfully colorful THICK envelopes packed with information about your upcoming trip!

The first pack you receive contains all of your Disney's Magical Express information if you are partaking in this service (which we are!).
The next envelope is all of your reservation details and luggage tags. There are also a few pages of coupons for restaurants and activities in Downtown Disney and other places around the Disney area (water sports, mini golf, etc).

Today we received our third (and fourth) piece of Mickey Mail:

So exciting! I love all the silly characters riding the monorail - Stitch just cracks me up! :)
The top (monorail-themed) envelope gives us ideas to help enhance our celebration - which happens to be our 4th Anniversary for this trip! There are suggestions from the Disney Florists for in-room celebrations, as well as ideas of where to eat dinner (even though all of our dining reservations have been made for WEEKS)!

The bottom, red envelope is our customized maps. I order these before every trip, partially because I just like getting the big envelope of them in the mail. We never USE the customized maps, and they end up in the "Disney Vacation Memories" box in the closet... but I still order them.
I'm very disappointed in the maps this time around, though. They still include Mickey's ToonTown Faire, even though it has been closed and demolished for quite some time now! C'mon Disney, keep up with yourself, will ya?

Three weeks from today our magical Anniversary Celebration kicks off, and it certainly can't get here soon enough!
Don't forget to help us plan our Photo Scavenger Hunt here! Any suggestions WILL make it into the hunt, and those photos will be shared - the sillier the better ;)

Have a Magical day, today!
°o°