Tips about ChildId and Mousecellaneous

I was reading through your site for something new and fun at Disney that we hadn't done and that is a little less "Disney" so my husband might quit complaining about another trip to WDW. Well, I found it -- parasailing. After reading the reviews I decided to schedule two double tandem flights for two adults with two children, ages 7 and 10. Wow, was that great! The kids loved it and so did my husband and I. (Note: maximum combined weight is 300 lbs. per flight). We went to the Contemporary Resort marina, and the boat driver and instructor were both excellent at their jobs. - Crystal

ALL PARKS - As a teacher I have found the park maps to be a wonderful way to teach map skills to my first graders. I always make sure to pick up a handful for my students. I also laminate them and put them in our reading basket. Even laminated, they get a lot of wear. Too bad...I guess I'll have to go back for replacements! - Rae Vautrin

The nametag idea for lost children/parents is a good idea; however, it might be good to let people know that they also sell a similar nametag at several stores in the parks that are personalized with names. They are a little different than the Cast Member tags, but a child could get confused. - Jody Wickett

EDITOR'S NOTE: Good point, Jody. A Cast Member friend of ours concurs: "Parents come up to us all the time to point out our nametags to their kids. Invariably they say something like, "If you are lost, look for someone with a Disney nametag." I like to point out to them that children with lost parents should look for someone with a WHITE Disney nametag, as Disney does offer personalized nametags in our merchandise locations that are similar to the real ones, and these can be purchased by anyone. It's the white ones (with the current celebration, like "Happiest Celebration on Earth") that will be worn only by a Cast Member."

After reading your information about "lost parents", it made me think of our last trip to Disney. My then 2-1/2 year-old daughter got separated from us -- she just walked quietly away, while we were looking at our map. This happened as we were exiting the Magic Kingdom and immediate panic struck me, because she could have been headed toward a bus, a boat or the monorail. I immediately alerted any Cast Member I could find and then a "tourist" walked over to me and offered to go back into the park to look for her, while my husband searched outside the gate. I thought to myself, "How nice of this man to take time out of his vacation to help a stranger." Sure enough, our daughter was standing right inside with a crowd around her. I thanked the man for taking the time to help me and then he explained to me that he was an undercover security guard. He told me that there are many people like him all through the parks, just looking for cases like this. That made me feel relieved to know that there are people looking out for our kids! - Cindy Boyer

We printed dog tags at Wal-Mart for about $5, then laced them through the kids' shoelaces near the toe so they wouldn't come off if their shoe was untied. The tags had names and cell numbers on them and the children were told to show the numbers to a Cast Member. My children were both old enough to know our numbers but the tags gave us both a little extra sense of peace. This is a cheap and easy way to make your little ones safe. - Heather Pitts

EDITOR'S NOTE: Now with Magic Bands you can write your cell number inside of the band.

As a former Disney College Program Cast Member, I had a family approach me one day while I was standing on Main Street, and the mother asked if she could borrow me for a second. I said yes, and she proceeded to point out my name tag and costume to her young daughter saying, "OK, sweetheart -- if you ever become separated from Mommy and Daddy, look for someone with one of these, OK? They will help you." I thought this was a very good idea because it lets kids know that there are people throughout the park who they can trust to get them back to their parents.

Also, along the missing parents subject, I had a young girl come up to me one day whose father had become lost. As I was talking with her, she pulled out a laminated card from her lanyard, and handed it to me. The card had her name, her parents' names, and also her father's cell phone number. She had been told by her parents to give the card to a Cast Member should she become separated from the rest of the group. This card helped us find her parents very quickly. I know it may be a bit of a hassle to write that information down and figure out how to attach it to your child, but believe me, if you are ever separated from your child, you will be SO glad that you took the time. It makes reuniting families so much easier and quicker! - Ann

EDITOR'S NOTE: We wholeheartedly agree with the suggestion to familiarize young children with what Cast Member nametags look like. Just last weekend, ALL EARS(R) Researcher Kenny says he saw two separate "lost parent" incidents in Disney's Animal Kingdom, and adds that it might also be helpful to point out certain Cast Member costumes. "Guest Relations, Custodial, Outdoor Vending and Security tend to have similar costumes parkwide," he notes. "All Cast Members with nametags can help (and can at least make sure the child gets to an appropriate Cast Member). And all Cast Members with radios should be able to transmit a lost child bulletin parkwide to all other Cast Members with radios."

Ever wonder how much walking you do at the different parks, or on different days? So did we. A couple of years ago I bought an inexpensive pedometer basically for this purpose. You may want to consider this, as it gives you a little more to talk about after your vacation. We keep a daily log of the miles we walk and share it with our friends back home. Also you will either confirm what you already think about how far you walk, or you may be quite surprised that you walked as far as you did. Just a note -- we always rack up the most miles on our days at Epcot. - Bob Rogers

I noticed in some of the online forums that many people will use their vacation as a reason or inspiration to get in shape. After all, you will need your "walkin' shoes" in the World! I, too, have begun walking in the mornings for exercise... inspired by our pending trip to that Magical Place! My tip is: there are many new sources for podcasts about Disney World. Listening to these podcasts really makes your walk go quickly! You don't need an iPod to listen; any MP3 player will do, or even burn them to disc for your old-fashioned CD Walkman! - Tom in Connecticut

EDITOR'S NOTE: We're aware of several Disney podcasts that have started up in recent months -- there's MouseTunes found at: http://mousetunes.com/ There are also the podcasts at WDWToday.com -- be sure to check out Episodes #19 and #22, which feature ALL EARS® editors Deb Wills and Deb Koma, discussing their book (PassPorter's Walt Disney World for Your Special Needs). We're sure there are other podcasts out there, too -- do a quick internet search if you're interested in finding more.

While preparing for our trip and reading all the tips I could find, I came across the tip about getting the dish wipes for washing out the refillable cups or anything else you might need to wash. I thought that it was an excellent tip and set out to try to find them. I looked in every store in my area trying to find them, but could not. Finally I decided to try to make my own. I got some thick baby wipes and laid them flat on the kitchen counter. I squeezed on some dish soap and left them to dry until the next day. When they were dry, I put them in a zipper top bag. It worked perfectly and I was able to use things I already had around the house! - Angela B.

On the same idea as the kid ID tags, when we took our last trip we had five children under 8 years old in our family, and there were 20 of us in total. In the past I had witnessed parents frantically searching for lost children, so I wanted to put something on the kids without giving out too much information. My kids love the popular rubber-band type bracelets, so I picked out plain-colored ones (not multi-colored). We actually used the Mickey icon ones from Disney World, and with a permanent marker wrote "parents' cell #" on them. We then instructed the kids to, if lost, alert the nearest Cast Member and show them the bracelet. It worked well, but luckily we did not have to put them to use! - Lisa Legere-Fraser

A recent tip of the week reminded me of something I used with my son years ago. We used a luggage tag with a closed flap so that the information wasn't "exposed" unless needed. We placed the tag with mom's and dad's names, the name of our hotel, and telephone numbers -- not home information or room numbers (that information would be very valuable to thieves!) -- on a belt pack that our son wore all the time. In addition, we picked a secret password. He knew to only go to people with a Disney tag or if they used the password. Don't use Mickey as a password at WDW -- way too obvious. Our son picked Bugs Bunny. He said nobody at WDW would say, "Bugs sent me!" We also taught him that if he ever got lost at WDW to stay in one place and just yell, "Help!" Cast Members are everywhere and trained to zoom to emergencies. I felt he was safer and the belt pack was the perfect carrier for his autograph book and pen. - Malinda Orrico

The last time our family went to Disney World, our granddaughter was 2 years old. She could communicate pretty well, but if a child is scared, it can be difficult. What my daughter did was write her cell phone number on the inside front of her daughter's T-shirts with a permanent marker. You couldn't see it unless you looked on the inside hem. All my granddaughter needed to do was to show a Cast Member the hem of her T-shirt and they could call her mother's cell phone in the park. I thought it was a great idea. - Marie Kuhn

Having once been lost for a terrifying five minutes in Disney World when I was a child, I have tried various tips mentioned in your newsletter to spare my children this experience. The hand holder at Wal-Mart didn't work, especially by the buses! I am not a seamstress, so putting their names in every shirt just isn't an option. Someone said to try these name tags that fasten to their shoes, except I thought the price was a little steep. Before we left on our last trip, I was in a store's luggage department. I purchased two waterproof luggage tags. I attached them to my kids' belt loops and stuck the tag in their pockets. It had all the important information on it, including our cell phone numbers. The kids knew if they were lost to go to a Cast Member and show them the tag. The best part about it is that the tags cost only $3 for both of them. - Laura Littner

Save those receipts! Twice our receipts from food service locations at Walt Disney World included a 20 percent off total merchandise purchase (from store opening to 1 p.m.) coupon at the bottom, good at select locations, good through January 5. This happened at both Pizza Planet in Disney's Hollywood Studios and also at the Electric Umbrella at Epcot. - Cheyenna

EDITOR'S NOTE: This promotion usually runs several times a year. Be sure to check if your receipt is one that has the coupon.

Velcro makes a 3/4-inch x 10-foot roll with the hooks on one side and the loops on the other so it sticks to itself. I bought mine in Walmart but I've also seen it in Home Depot. I cut it off in one-foot lengths to attach a mug or folded windbreaker to my belt loop. It has a hundred uses, and rolls up to fit in a pocket or backpack. - Brian Phillips