Tips about Countdown and Souvenirs
Last week Glo From Miami's Souven-EARS ideas dealt with bringing inexpensive items back home for the office or classmates. Several readers wrote with more suggestions:
Liz: In Epcot, some of the carts have unusual and inexpensive musical items. We brought back wooden flutes for everyone in the class and they were only $1 each!
Suttonelz7: The Mickey-shaped straws they sell at most of the resort food courts are very inexpensive souvenirs. I got the straws for 25 cents apiece when I went in 2001. I was able to bring back souvenirs for all my staff for less than $20 and they all loved them.
Marilyn Flage: I always bring back Disney emery boards. I figure that is a gift everyone can use. I usually find 4-5 different designs, so I let my fellow workers pick which they prefer and then I have the leftovers to use myself.
I LOVED your article on pressed coins and I have to agree they are fabulous and inexpensive. Something I do to collect my coins and give as souvenir gifts is create jewelry. A small awl used for piercing leather works well in piercing the ends of these coins, and then simple jump rings and clasps found in Michael's or any craft store work great in connecting the coins into bracelets, key chains, earrings -- you name it! You can do these as themes, such as princesses or the Fab Five or even by parks. I once brought these home for several of my students! - Erika Swanson
I love the artwork that I find at Disney World shops, but the prices are a bit higher than what is budgeted in my vacation spending money. Easy solution: I buy postcards that are miniature versions of the large prints that are offered for big bucks. I spend two dollars on a postcard, matte, frame and PRESTO... a beautiful Disney masterpiece. The Mickey Mouse Norman Rockwell's are my favorites! - Fran Dodge
We just got back from Disney World. We bought our son a Magical Moments pin, which lights up at the various shows and on rides. (A secret bonus was that on the dark or scary rides he just pushed the pin, which lit up so that he wasn't scared.) Unfortunately, even though the pin comes with replacement batteries, we went through three parks before we found that the jewelry store on Main Street USA had the screwdriver necessary to remove the back panel. Our tip: bring your own small screwdriver with you. The batteries can be purchased anywhere in the park for $1.49 + tax for one, but you need two batteries per pin. It is a wonderful keepsake. - Tracey and Mackenzie
EDITOR'S NOTE:: If you are flying to WDW and plan on bringing a screwdriver, please remember to pack it in your checked luggage, NOT in your carry-on luggage.
I work with elementary school-age children and have many friends with kids in that age category. I buy postcards when in the World and bring them home to use throughout the year. I send them to my own kids (at college), and to my nieces and nephews scattered around the nation. But my most fun postcard use is sending one to someone I know is going to Disney with a message like, "We are so excited you are coming to see us! Please stop by and get my autograph when you are here. And don't forget to bring your camera so we can take our picture together. See you next week! Mickey." My friends have told me how fun it has been to have the kids get this sort of mail and I love being the secret Mickey spreading a little pre-Disney pixie dust. - Terry Heyward
I just wanted to add that it's best to use older pennies in the pressed penny machines. Starting in the middle of 1982, the US Mint switched from copper pennies to zinc pennies with a thin layer of copper. When you put these pennies through the pressed penny machine, you get a kind of "marble cake" appearance with the zinc sometimes peeking through. Some people like this effect, but I prefer to search through my pennies and find the older ones to use. - John Hayes
The images on new shiny pennies are a lot clearer than old used pennies! I suggest you roll up your pennies and head right to the bank to exchange for a brand new roll! - Cathy
Last year one grandchild got the postcard I sent from Walt Disney World, and the other one never did, so this year I took a business envelope and sent them both to their mom. They both got their cards. I also took a small padded envelope and sent a group of postcards to the first-graders in a class where I am a volunteer. (And the money saved on postage paid for the envelope!) - Deborah L.
Another idea to control the "I wants" from your kids. My daughter earned money before going on our trips. Sometimes she collected cans to recycle, sometimes she did chores around the house. She was much more selective about her choices and valued her souvenirs much more. - Suzanne P.
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Another idea to control the "I wants" from your kids. My daughter earned money before going on our trips. Sometimes she collected cans to recycle, sometimes she did chores around the house. She was much more selective about her choices and valued her souvenirs much more. - Suzanne P.
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I was a lucky kid -- visited Disney three times before graduating high school... One of my favorite souvenirs from Disney is my sterling silver Doc charm. My sisters and I got silver charm bracelets while in elementary school, and whenever there was an "event" or trip we'd get a silver charm to commemorate it. I've since married and have three daughters of my own. The girls each have a silver charm bracelet and plan on adding another character charm for each of our visits to Disney. Who knows? Maybe someday we'll be adding charms to their daughters' bracelets! - Suzanne Vallillo
I just love your tips for getting children excited about their Walt Disney World trip. But what if your child is married and 28 years old? What I do is count the number of days until my daughter and her husband's trip, and then I send her an email that goes something like this: "Only 55 days to Go!" I send it every few days, and just change the number. She loves the emails and says they make her smile! See? You are never too old for the Magic. - Georgette A. from New Jersey
My 3-year-old daughter and I will be going to Walt Disney World for the first time next month. To get into the Disney spirit, I've been having the "Disney princesses" send her little cards every couple of days. I print a blank card and write a little note from a princess saying how excited she is to hear that my daughter is coming. Sometimes I mention a specific ride that we can go on (i.e., Snow White's Scary Adventures, The Magic Carpets of Aladdin, etc.) that features the princess. Then I enclose pictures. Some pictures are of when my daughter met the princess at Disneyland. Some pictures are of the specific ride that I mentioned in the card, and some are just images of the princess that I found on the internet. My daughter loves this and we've been taping the cards on our wall next to the calendar where we're marking off the days until our trip. It's been a fun way for me to get her excited about the trip. - An ALL EARS® Reader
When my family was planning to go to WDW last Thanksgiving, my wife, Kathy, started a game we would play at the dinner table called "Who Am I?" The rules are simple. Describe yourself, either a character, ride, resort, restaurant, or anything that is found at WDW, with the fewest clues and have the others guess who or what you are. Some are simple like, "I'm small, green and fly from Cinderella Castle." Answer: Tinker Bell... It puts the family in a WDW frame of mind for the trip. We started playing it this past weekend, because my girls and I are trying to convince my wife to go during Thanksgiving this year! - Mark Oldmixon
I just wanted to echo the tip on the Disney Countdown. We count down to our trip to WDW, too. The family gets together and my husband prints out pages that say Days to Go and a large number on each page. Then we sit around the table clipping out pictures from our saved Disney catalogs and magazines and decorate each page. Once the calendar is up the girls take turns tearing off each day and the excitement builds as we get closer to the "Time to go to Disney World" page. It's not only a lot of fun to do, but is a great family activity that brings us closer each time we do it! - Bonnie Bailey
