Visiting Disney with your kids can be fun or stressful, but either way memorable.😉 We have been to Disneyland numerous times as a family and we get the plan figured out a little better each time. You want to get the most out of your trip considering how long you may have to save in order to go. Do your research and plan your trip, taking into consideration how long you’ll be there and what your family wants to do and see. This is a basic list of tips to start with.
- Travel in off season (no summer, spring break or holidays) This is your best bet to avoid LONG wait times in lines.
- Wait until kids are old enough to actually remember the trip and enjoy characters and rides.
- Don’t try to fit more than one park in a day. It is just too much.
- If you are only there for a day make sure to prioritize things you want to ride or see. (We usually only go for a day so it takes some planning in advance.)
- Get a map of park and decide on a couple things each that each of you want to do. Then plan your route to get to those within first couple hours of opening. After you make it to priorities then you can slow down and go to other rides.
- Use single rider lines. You may not be sitting with family members but you will all get to ride a lot more.
- Use fast passes in order to save standing in lines for more popular rides.
- Fanny packs are unfortunately your friend on this trip. You can put phones, money, etc. in these and it is easier than a backpack when on rides. One of us always brings a small backpack for other items though.
- Bring a few small snacks. You save money and time. Water is expensive in park. This is where the backpack comes in.
- Staying in park can be convenient if you get a good deal. Most local hotels in the area that generally cost a lot less have shuttles to park though and might be a better option.
- Make sure phones are charged.
- Set up meeting place in case anyone gets seperated.
- Show kids who staff are in case they get seperated and have phone # written on their hand or a card in their pocket that they can give staff in case they need help locating you.
- Take a picture of your kid before you head in park so that you know exactly what they are wearing and you have a photo to share if you need help locating your child.
- Be prepared for all of the souvenir shops which are strategically located at the end of many rides.
- Know if you plan to watch any shows that people start saving spots a couple hours ahead of time. If you show up at scheduled time you likely won’t be close enough to see anything.
- Have fun but have a basic plan so you don’t miss out on the things you really want to do.
If your able to stay a few days then you obviously have the option to just wing it a bit. If you’re on limited time, make a plan in order to see and do as much as possible. Have a great trip!
These sandwiches are so good and require very little effort, just a crockpot. A few minutes prep and you’ll come home to a great meal.
- 1 1/2 lbs beef- sliced into strips (use what you want it will tenderize in crockpot all day)
- 1 onion sliced
- 1 red pepper sliced
- 1 green pepper sliced
- 2 cups beef broth (I used bouillon cubes/my daughter used a packet of aujus gravy)
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp italian seasoning (optional)
- Sandwhich rolls
- Cheese (I use sharp cheddar) grated
Add strips of beef, onion, peppers to crockpot. Stir together beef broth and seasonings. Pour into crockpot. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Serve on toasted rolls and sprinkle with cheese. Serve with cup of juices for dipping. Enjoy.
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I always dream about having someone come in and clean my house once a week. I just want my days off to actually be days off that don’t involve dusting, laundry and mopping. Well that’s probably not going to happen anytime soon. So I better get started. Honestly though I probably couldn’t let someone come clean my house unless I cleaned it first.
First off my house is not that bad…but I have gotten into bad habits. I procrastinate until I have all kinds of things to put away and the jobs end up taking longer than they really should, due to my ability to put things off. I go to work, come home, cook dinner, get kid ready for bed and then……nothing else gets done…..I put it off until my days off. Well I just got myself re-motivated. I read a great magazine about organizing your home. I’m ready to go! By the end of this weekend my life and home will be organized! Hahaha, we’ll see how far I get. No housekeeper to help me out.😥
So here’s my plan, we’ll see how it goes. First thing, we have too many calendars going and my genius whiteboard in the kitchen looks great but it doesn’t work when no one actually looks at it or keeps it up to date. It’s September and I think it still says June, but I haven’t actually looked. So my next bright idea is to try a shared online calendar. I downloaded an app called Cozi Family Organizer. I don’t know how this is going to work but we are going to try. This was recommended in my magazine and might be worth a shot. It was easy to set up. You can color code each family member, share calendar, add to shopping list and to do lists. So plan is to get rid of that refrigerator grocery list that I always forget when I go to the store and keep everyone up to date on weeks plans without sending a million messages and phone calls. I’ll let you know how this goes.
Second, I tried the timer suggestion. I’ve been setting a timer for my tasks. I know this sounds dumb but so far it’s working for me. I set the timer for say 15 minutes to clean kitchen and then just go for it. My son is showing interest in the race but hasn’t bought into it yet and hasn’t volunteered to join in. So far he just wants to come check the timer for me to let me know I’m almost out of time. Not a huge help yet. He’s going to love when we try it on his room later, haha.
Next I’m getting rid of what I don’t use. I know, quite the concept, but things accumulate quickly. It’s very freeing to load all of those clothes and household items in your car and drop them off at your local drop off spot. You can always sell other items online that you no longer need. Then the key is to think before you purchase. Don’t buy items you don’t need….I need to remember this one. This might take me awhile.
The biggest part of my plan is to try to get in the habit of actually putting things where they belong to start. I tend to set things on table and forget about it. I am planning to take 5 minutes each night before bed to run through house and put things back in their place. I’m hoping this slows down my pile on the table.
Then there’s the groceries. I go through spurts of meal planning and then it slips off and I all of a sudden don’t know what I’m cooking for dinner until I’m standing in the kitchen after work. I am going to start back with my weekly meal planning again. It saves money on groceries and creates a lot less waste. I also tried ordering my groceries online, so all I had to do was pull in the parking lot and have my groceries loaded in the car. This was great and not only saved time but probably saved money on those impulse buys. Now I actually like to go in the grocery store sometimes but will definitely use this frequently to save time and money.
So here’s the plan:
- Stop procrastinating
- Use shared calendar
- Use online shared grocery list
- Set timer for 5 minutes each evening Monday-Thursday to pick up and put things away
- Set timer for 15 minutes per room on day off to do any other cleaning, dusting or organizing
- Designate a spot for things that will be donated and put things in it as needed
- Put things back where they belong
- Plan meals for the week
I really do have good intentions to get organized and stay that way. I started awhile ago with my stacks of papers and have improved in that area. Have not perfected the system yet but getting there. Now I’ll try to stick with this plan. I’m trying to keep a simple plan that anyone can follow, fit in their schedule and stick with. It may be obvious and basic ideas but as a real person sometimes it’s hard to even fit in and stick to the most basic of plans. Reality is that life happens and sometimes you just don’t have the energy physically or mentally to take those socks to the laundry. Sometimes you need to buy that magazine while you’re in line at the grocery store in order to gain some motivation. You’re going to have weeks you screw up…but try to get back on track and maybe just maybe you’ll have some time left for something you actually enjoy doing.Get your life organized so you actually have time to live life.
