A Simple Life: Disney Staycation

Hey, Guys...

As promised there are some more Disney Staycation pics at the bottom of this post.

The post is the same, but the pics are NEW!

Good Saturday morning!

As promised, here is the post from my daughter-in-law, Melia, about her Disney Staycation.

Austin and I learned early in our marriage that typical vacations are not our “thing.” As we prepared for our first vacation as husband and wife, I spent the entire day and night before we left planning my outfits, getting our snacks, making sure laundry was done, cleaning our apartment, checking flights, etc. etc. etc. Around 10:00 that night, Austin walked into the bedroom and began packing.

“Do you think 4 pair of underwear will be plenty?”

“Well, we’re going to be gone for about 6 days, so I might get a few more.”

“Okay, well what should I put my toothbrush in?”

“The toothbrush cases are under the counter in the bathroom."

“Right. So, when I am done here, you’re going to check all my things that I leave out and put them in the bag for me, right?”

“Yeah… I won’t be doing that.”

I’ll spare you the details of how the conversation continued from there, but that was when I learned that I am not married to a world traveler. Since then, Austin and I have taken many great trips! Then we had a baby and the overwhelming, organized chaos ensued.

In our parenthood, we have determined that staycations are more our style. We began going on staycations last summer when a full vacation really wasn’t in our budget, and we loved it! This year, I decided to step it up a notch with a Disney-themed staycation. It makes sense really, when you consider how much planning, money, time, effort, and magic it takes to make a Disney vacation happen with a toddler. We opted to create a Disney-like experience for our 2-year-old from the comfort of our home.

Here’s how we did it:

1. The Schedule

I created a schedule based off the activities that were available to us that resembled the overall makeup of four Disney parks (Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and Blizzard Beach).

We planned out what we were going to do based on our daily schedule and what worked for us.

In Magic Kingdom, we went to Let’s Play, an indoor gym/play area that has “rides” that our little guy can do. The best part is he can do literally everything in the gym. There are no age or height limits that apply to him!

In Animal Kingdom, we went to the zoo. Our zoo also has Dole Whips, a Carousel, a train, and of course animals/animal-related activities such as giraffe feedings!

In Hollywood Studios, we went to the McWane Center, our local Children’s Museum/Science Center. We played in the Itty Bitty Magic City (which is set up similar to a movie set) and participated in a demonstration about craters on the moon!

In Blizzard Beach, we went to the Cullman Wellness Aquatic Center. For $10 per person a family can spend the day lounging by the pools, going down slides, playing on the playground (which is ON the water), floating down the lazy river, or playing in the splash pad; and that’s JUST the kids’ pool, there is also another outdoor pool and an indoor pool.

2. The Daily Details

After we planned WHAT we were going to do, we planned HOW we were going to do it! Disney is all about the details, right? Each morning, we started our day with Mickey Mouse waffles (thanks, Eggo!), and a surprise letter from a character telling us where we were going with a gift to use during that day. For example, our guy got a stuffed Simba on the day we went to Animal Kingdom.

Each night, we had a movie night that fit the theme for the day. On Blizzard Beach Day, we watched Finding Nemo in Momma and Daddy’s bed.

We also made a point to work in a date night for Mom and Dad. This happened on our Magic Kingdom Day, and yes, it fit into the theme as well! We dropped RT off at his Fairy GRANDmother’s house (Nana B) then headed off to the movie theater to catch a matinee of Aladdin and an Italian dinner (like in Lady and the Tramp)

3. What We’ve Learned

Throughout our staycation experience, we’ve learned a thing or two about how to get away when we aren’t on a getaway.

Plan and prepare those around you - As mean as it sounds, we have to say no to things that aren’t truly family-related. Even though we’re in town, we are still on vacation, so non-family things must fall to the wayside as much as possible.

Be flexible - Staycations should be as relaxing, if not more relaxing, than a normal vacation. Don’t stress, don’t over plan, and, most importantly, listen to your family when they need a break! By Wednesday, our two-year-old told me that he wanted to take a nap. So, we all took a nap!

4. The Breakdown - This was such a fun vacation that really worked for us and was cost effective. Not including food, our week cost us less than $100.

We have McWane Center and Zoo memberships saving us money. Here’s the rest of our budget breakdown:

$8 for Let’s Play
$20 for Cullman Wellness Aquatic Center
$15 for Mickey Ears (found on Amazon)
$7 for Stuffed Simba
$6 for Mr. Potato Head
$20 for Toy Story Puddle Jumper

The important part of a staycation is making it work for you! We worked hard to make our vacation something special for our son and to give him new and different experiences that he doesn’t get during the school year. One day we’ll go to the real Disney World, but for now, we’ll just tell Mickey, “See ya real soon!”

NOTE FROM ENCHANTING BELINDA - We had some trouble getting ALL of the pics ready for the post, so here are the first five. It will be the first of next week before we have all the others ready for your perusal!