You can’t finish if you don’t start.

It’s Friday and we are all looking forward to the weekend. If you are a runner you might be looking forward to the Inagural Dumbo Double Dare Challenge at Disneyland. To earn this special medal crazy (I mean enthusiastic) people will run a 10K on Saturday and a half marathon on Sunday. I wish I was one of those people, but I just couldn’t do it this year.

However, it is on my calendar for next year. On Labor Day weekend 2014 I will be at Disneyland earning my Dumbo Double Dare medal. I haven’t made any other plans for that trip but I have made my decision.

How about you? Have you been wanting to visit a Disney park? Do you say that you will go “someday”? Did you know that ”someday” is not on the calendar? Instead of making wishes, make plans. Take some time this weekend to get out your calendar and make a date with Disney. You don’t have to do anything else right now. Just write down the date you want to go.

What is the point of this? One, it gives you something to work for, something to save for. Plus, you can keep an eye out for any Disney deals that come along and you’ll be ready to snatch them up. Lastly, knowing that you are visiting the parks, even far into the future, can bring a smile to your face. It always does for me.

So make a date, write it on a piece of paper, decorate it with Disney stickers, and put it somewhere prominent, like on your refrigerator, or your bathroom mirror. Maybe I’ll see you at Disneyland next year, running with the rest of the crazies. Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: Do you like Pintrest? It is a great way to plan for your trip. Make a page dedicated to your Disney vacation and then pin fun ideas as you find them. New rides, great food options, and cool merchandise can all be added so you won’t forget anything when it comes time start finalizing your trip. Plus it builds up the anticipation which is part of the fun of planning things with time to spare.

I think photos make amazing gifts. They are personal and can often be useful if they are turned into coasters or bookends. I always love it when people give me photos even if they are just in a frame because it is often a photo I don’t have and I know I will enjoy looking at it often.

So if you want to give photos as gifts the time to start working on the gift is now. Are you going to be doing things with your friends and family before December? Make plans to take pictures of each person or each group of people. Don’t just assume you’ll remember. I have often had such a good time with my family that I forgot to take photos. I always kick myself afterwards.

Also, if you are planning to turn your photos into a gift know how many photos you will need. If your collage frame holds six pictures plan to take ten or twelve so that you have lots to choose from. I once got some lovely glass coasters that each had a slot to slide a photo in. There were four coasters and four members of the family I was giving them to. I planned to get multiple shots of each person so I would have the perfect photo for each coaster.

It is also important to know if you need upclose photos or large group photos for your gift plans. Plus if you are going to be at a Disney park you will want to know each person’s favorite ride or character so you can take photos that include their interests.

If you plan ahead you’ll have the photos you need to make the gifts you want to give. Finishing your Christmas gifts early is fun and stress free. I think everyone’s Christmas should be that way. Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: In the process of taking photos for gifts don’t forget to have pictures taken of yourself. People will want to have you in their pictures, too. Pass your camera around, have Cast Members take your picture, or use PhotoPass +. However you do it, you’ll be glad you did.

When I lived close to Disneyland I usually visited in the winter and spring when the crowds were less and the weather was nice. But lots of people visit during the summer. The combination of crowds and heat can wilt the most enthusiastic Disney fan. Below I list five ways you can keep your cool even on the hottest days. Some of these ideas work no matter where you are. So stay cool and read on.

5 ways to stay cool while visiting the parks on hot days:

1) Ride the right rides. Big Thunder Mountain is a great ride, but I would not want to ride it in the heat of the day. Instead head for rides that are 1) Dark rides with cool interiors 2) have indoor lines or 3) are water rides. Some great examples are Peter Pan’s Flight, Space Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Splash Mountain. Save rides like Mad Tea Party and Autopia for early mornings or night. Another cool idea is to head over to Epcot. You can enjoy several rides, and even a nice meal inside the various pavilions in Future World.

2) Drink lots of water. If you stay hydrated you’ll have a much better vacation. I once got dehydrated and couldn’t enjoy a meal at Club 33. What a bummer. Don’t blow your budget by buying water. Instead bring water bottles for everyone and refill as needed.

3) Escape during the afternoon. If you are staying on property this is easy to do. You can relax in your air-conditioned room, enjoy a drink in the many lovely lounges, or splash in the dozens of themed pools found at the resorts. You’ll be cool, rested, and ready to deal with the crowds during the much cooler evening.

4) Apply sunscreen often. Nothing ruins a trip more than a bad sunburn. To avoid this apply sunscreen thoughout the day, not just in the morning. There are lots of great products out there that make this task much easier. I like the sprays the best because I hate the thick lotions that never seem to rub in. You don’t need to be obsessive, but if you apply after every meal you’ll be glad you did.

5) Seek shade or water. When there are tons of people in the parks it may be stuffy indoors and too hot in the sun. I suggest two things. Find shade or find water. There are lots of water sprays and fountains set up in the parks so you can get soaked and cool off. A table in the shade may be just as cool as one inside if the restaurant is crowded. Also, some restaurants, like the Hungry Bear Restaurant in Disneyland‘s Critter Country have lots of covered seating. Since it is by the water it feels cooler.

If you know you are going to be visiting on a hot day it pays to prepare ahead of time. Your goal is to keep cool, calm, and collected so what you remember is your fun vacation, not the awful heat. And remember, when tempers are hot you can always cool everyone down with a Mickey ice cream bar, or my favorite, a chocolate-covered frozen banana. Just beware of brain freeze. Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: If you are traveling with kids and you are going to the parks on a hot day have your kids wear their swimsuit under their clothes. Then, when they want to run though the fountains or the spray they can play in their swimsuits and have dry clothes for the rest of the day.

Image from www.spoonful.com

Summer is officially here. I always think summer starts June 1st, but the calendar puts it on today so who am I to argue. My thoughts have turned to vacations, Independence Day, and lazy fun. Soon I’ll be thinking of Christmas gifts (yes, I start early) but for now I want to do sunny crafts. Of course, the first place I look for ideas is at spoonful.com.

I really like these summer printables because they are very useful. From a three-month Phineas and Ferb calendar to help you plan your summer, to a summer wish list, these crafts will help you have the most fun summer ever. There are toys to make, pages to color, and lots of decorations that will remind you of the beach. These crafts are the perfect cure to the “I’m bored” complaint. No one should ever be bored during summer. School will be here way too soon. Happiness squared.

Goofy Craft: Monsters University is coming to theaters soon and Disney is celebrating a Monstrous Summer at the parks. You can also have a monstrous summer with lots of Mike and Sully crafts from spoonful.com. Any day is a good day to scare up some fun.

You will get wet!

The typical checklist for a trip to the Disney parks includes your camera, autograph book, tickets, and money. These are must-haves. But I have discovered a few other items that make a Disney vacation more stress free. The great thing about these items is they are very small and can fit inside a small bag. If you keep this small bag always packed you can drop it into your bag when you head to the parks. You may not use these items every time, but you’ll save time, money, and sanity if you do need them.

Five useful items to bring to the parks:

1) Ziploc bags. I like the sandwich or quart size, but whatever size you happen to have, these are immensely useful. You can use one as a doggie bag and it is much easier to carry around than a to-go box. You can put wet items in them. You can put half-licked all-day suckers in them. I always put my guide books in baggies before I go on Splash Mountain.The uses are endless and they are so small that you can pack quite a few in many different sizes.

2) Aspirin. Or Tylenol. Or Advil. Any pain pill that you like to use at home should be in your sanity bag. When you have muscle soreness or a headache due to too much noise, the last thing you want to do is hunt for medicine. At the minimum you’ll have to walk a long ways to the first-aid station and if you decide to buy some you’ll pay a lot. Been there, done that. Save your sanity and have some with you.

3) Small towel or bandana. Wet benches. Sticky faces. Soaked skin from Splash Mountain. There are lots of reasons to bring a towel. I like the washcloth size, but a bandana can work, also. When it is damp just tie it to the outside of your pack and it will dry quickly. Or put it in the baggies you also packed.

4) Carabineer. These are the clips that climbers use, but nowadays you can find them everywhere. They are very handy if you want to attach items to your pack so your hands are empty. Or if you broke down and bought your child a sword, a carabineer is a useful item for attaching the sword to their belt loop so they are not waving it all over and hitting everyone.

5) Band-aids. Like the pain pills, these are an item that you won’t think about until you need one. Instead of interrupting your trip when your child scrapes their knee running around on Tom Sawyer’s Island, just put a Band-Aid on it and they are off again. If you buy Disney themed Band-Aids then it is almost like a badge of honor.

You may have more items to put in your sanity bag but these five I have found extremely useful. Just make sure whatever you bring is small. If it weighs you down you may not pack it and then you won’t be saving your sanity. Any vacation can become insane. Planning ahead can make the insanity fun instead of annoying. Fun is better. Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: I don’t mind walking around in wet clothes because they will dry fairly quickly, but I hate having wet shoes. They never seem to dry and they make my feet feel gross. My sanity solution is to bring a pair of flip-flops with me. Flip-flops don’t take up much room and before you go on Splash Mountain or Grizzly River Run you can switch shoes. After the ride dry your feet off with the small towel you brought, put your damp flip-flops into a gallon baggie, and put your shoes back on. Your feet will be happy and that will make you happy.

Saying something is Mickey Mouse has not always been a complement. It has been thought of as cheap, or shoddy, or small in importance. When I think of Mickey Mouse I think optimistic, dream catcher, and go-getter. As Walt Disney said, “…it was all started with a mouse.” Could my goal planning start with a mouse, too?

I was reading a great book on self-motivation called 100 Ways to Motivate Yourself by Steve Chandler. Sometimes a book with 100 ideas only has 2 or 3 really useful ones, but this book has almost 100 great ideas that are easy to use. Number 67 introduces the circle game, a way to plan a goal in 4 minutes. I have modified it into the Mickey Mouse goal game. Here is how it works.

Draw a simple Mickey Mouse face. We all know how to do this. Draw one large circle for his face and two smaller (not too small) circles for his ears. They don’t have to be perfect. Just make sure you have three circles.

Above the left ear write, “This year.” Above the right ear write, “This month.” Below the face write, “Today.” Okay, now you have your Mickey Mouse goal planner. You may want a calculator also. Let’s have some fun.

Pick a goal you are working on. It could be weight loss, or saving money, or paying a debt. Just pick one thing. My goal is to go to Disneyland this year. I need to save $1200 to do that. So my goal is “Save $1200 for Disneyland trip.” I write that in the left ear labeled “This year.”

Wow, that sounds hard to do. How am I ever going to save $1200? Well, if I want to go to Disneyland in December then I have six months (May through November) to save $1200. So I divide $1200 by 6 and I get $200. That sounds better. I write that number in the right ear labeled “This month.”

$200 is still a chunk of change. Let’s divide it again. When I divide $200 by 30 days I get $6.66 a day. I write that number in the face circle above “Today.” Wow. All I have to do is save $6.66 each day and I will be able to go to Disneyland in December? I can do that. That is a Mickey Mouse goal. Plus, it is fool proof. If I meet my daily Mickey Mouse goal I am guaranteed to meet my monthly goal and if I meet my monthly goal I am guaranteed to meet my yearly goal. Disneyland here I come!

Try this out yourself. Below I provide a few more examples. Some goals may be multi-year goals, like paying off a mortgage or student loan. Decide what you want to do in 2013 and worry about the rest later. The beauty of this goal planner is it focuses on what you can do today and usually it is very doable. You don’t have to wonder about next month or next year. Just reach your daily Mickey Mouse goal, mark it off your list, and get on with your day. Happiness squared.

5 Mickey Mouse Goals

1) Read the unread books on my shelf. 30 books  a year, 4.2 books a month, 1/6 a book each day

2) Pay off a $600 debt to a friend. $600 a year, $86 a month, save $3 a day

3) Lose 30 pounds. 30 pounds a year, 4.2 pounds a month, 1/6 pound a day or a deficit of 600 calories a day

4) Write a 300 page book. 300 pages a year, 43 pages a month, 1.5 pages a day

5) Complete 5 scrapbooks (each scrapbook has 40 pages.) 200 pages a year, 28 pages a month, 1 page a day

Goofy Quote: (I love this quote. I think it goes great with Mickey Mouse goal planning. Perhaps you could write it below your face to remind yourself to focus on the “Today” circle, and not worry about the month or the year.)

“Why worry? If you’ve done the very best you can, worrying won’t make it any better.” Walt Disney

Image from www.spoonful.com

A mother loves anything she gets from her children or grandchildren because she is a mother, so why not have some fun when picking out her gift. A homemade frame, a lovely dessert, or a photo card are all great ways to say “I love you.” Add a dash of Disney whimsy and a nice gift becomes a present sure to make your mom smile.

There are so many fun Mother’s Day ideas from spoonful.com that they put out two articles. If you are looking for cards, crafts and other fun printables click here. I gave my mom a Sleeping Beauty card that colored myself (I love to color). She loved it and showed everyone the unique card she received.

If you are looking for a fun recipe or craft idea then click here for some tasty gifts. I love the Mommyland coupon book, frames that hold a special photo, and the strawberry rosebuds. Why not give your mom all three.

The nice part about these ideas is that a lot of them can be used for a birthday or just because. I’m sure Mom would appreciate a special gift any time of the year. Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: You are going to be at Walt Disney World with your Mom on Mother’s Day and you want to do something magical for her then contact Disney Floral and Gifts. They have several Mother’s Day packages guaranteed to make your mom feel like a queen for a day. Check out the Disney Parks Blog for examples.

There are two types of people in the world – those who get lost and those who don’t. I am the former. If I have a map and I am paying attention then I can get anywhere. But my mind tends to wander and I am easily distracted (squirrel!) so I often find myself somewhere other than where I planned to be. While this usually isn’t a problem and I discover many wonderful things sometimes I really am trying to get somewhere at a certain time. How do I keep myself on course? I use landmarks.

This is especially easy to do at the Disney parks because there are many distinct objects that can be used as landmarks. When I was staying at the Disneyland Hotel last summer I often forgot how to get out of the hotel area and into the Downtown Disney area. The hotels are very tall and hide the outside world. Luckily, there was a handy landmark. Between our hotel and Downtown Disney there was a large sorcerer’s apprentice hat covered in stars. All I had to do was see this hat and I knew which way to go. It was nice to be able to wool-gather and not get lost.

I try to use landmarks wherever I go. If you are like me and often wander off the beaten path, try finding your own landmarks. And remember, not all who wander are lost. Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: If you are a runner, or have ever wanted to run in a Disney event then I have ultra-fun news for you. Disney has added a 10K to the Disneyland Half Marathon weekend that takes place on Labor Day weekend. Along with the 10K they have created the Dumbo Double Dare, a special medal for people who run both the 10K and the half marathon.

This is a similar event to the Goofy’s Race and a Half Challenge that takes place at the Walt Disney World Marathon weekend. To earn a Goofy you have to run the half marathon on Saturday and the full marathon on Sunday.

I think the Dumbo will become a coveted medal. In fact, the all the spots for all the 10K, the Dumbo, and the Disneyland half marathon for 2013 filled in 26 hours. I finished the Disneyland Half Marathon in 2012, but now that I know about the Dumbo Double Dare I will be signing up in 2014 the moment it opens.

If MyMagic+ sounds as awesome to you as it does to me then take time to explore MyDisneyExperience on the Walt Disney World website. Through this site you can customize your trip and add personal information to your Magic Band. There is also a mobile app you can download for a variety of smart phones and tablets. I had a lot of fun playing with all the features and now I want to plan a trip to Walt Disney World more than ever. Who wants to come with me? Happiness squared.

Goofy Tip: Now online check-in at Walt Disney World resorts can be done 60 days in advance. When you check-in online your packet and keys are at a special desk at the resort. Just show your I.D. and you are ready to go to your room. What could be easier? To use online check-in click here.

Image from NY Times

Okay, before we go any farther I am going to admit my bias. I like new technology. I figure that it is a little late to worry about big brother watching us. Wherever I go, from my grocery store to my doctor they are collecting information about me to make my visits better. So far, this has only benefited me and I don’t feel like I’m slipping into 1984 or Farenheit 451 (but I do read these books again and again so I know what to watch for).

When I heard about Disney’s newest program being released in 2013 called MyMagic+ I was excited. And then I started hearing and reading about it. It seemed like everyone wanted to spin it in a negative way. From Marketplace on NPR to Coast to Coast A.M. (I don’t even want to tell you what they said) people were concerned about Disney collecting our personal information and using it for nefarious purposes. I’m pretty certain that the only reason Disney wants to collect my information is so they can improve the parks and entice me to visit again. Well, with MyMagic+ I am hooked.

Seven reasons I think MyMagic+ is going to be a great program:

1) You don’t have to worry about losing your cards. In the past, I have been ultra-careful with my hotel key card and my park ticket. I would put them in my bag  and check them often so I did not loose them. With the MyMagic+ MagicBand we will be wearing our cards on our wrist, a stress-free option.

2) You can reserve special events at home. From Fastpasses to dinner reservations, you can now set up these timesaving events from home. I love to plan as much as possible before I leave so this is an awesome addition.

3) It is both optional and flexible. Right now the program is only available to Guests who are staying on property. If I didn’t already stay on property I would now (I bet Disney planned it that way). If you are nervous about providing too much personal information you can enter as much or as little as you want. Perhaps you will provide all your information, but limit the information on your children’s bands.

4) There is a website and an app to help you manage your MyMagic+ program. If you make plans at home you can change them in the park with the app. Walt Disney World now has Wifi in the parks so you can use your smart phone or an iPod Touch like I have.  On the busy days at the park Wifi might be a better idea when everyone is clogging up the cell service.

5) You can have a credit card put on your MagicBand. This is similar to the program that allows you to put your credit card on your hotel key card. It is very convenient and means you have less items to carry. If your purchase is more than $50 you have to enter a PIN. I personally do not attach my credit card to anything but that is because I use mostly cash in the parks (crazy, I know).

6) Your park experience will be enhanced. I love the new interactive queues at various attractions. Now those queues will not only be interactive but personalized. Different characters along the way will talk to you and relate any information you have provided. I can’t wait to try that out.

7) VIP seating for parades and fireworks will be available. This is a wonderful idea and only one more way that the MyMagic+ program can enhance your trip.

Okay, enough gushing from me. I know that there are going to be problems and delays when this program is released. I hope that they keep it around long enough to fix the bugs and allow the Guests to get used to it. There are lots of questions that have not been addressed yet, but I am ready to grab my MagicBand and check out all that the MyMagic+ program has to offer.

Goofy Website: If you would like to learn more about the MyMagic+ program check out these articles for more information.

New York Times

The Disney Blog

The Disney Parks Blog