DIY Savings Bank for Disney

Here in the cottage, we have always followed the same rule my parents set up for me regarding buying souvenirs in the parks. They gave us a set amount (and later we earned our own money). That was all we had to spend. If they purchased something for us it was their prerogative, but we knew even before asking that the answer was probably going to be no. (This didn't prevent my sister from asking - ever.)

For Doc, out of sight is out of mind; and before you know it we are leaving and he is complaining that he didn't know it was so close to Disney and why didn't we remind him? (Of course, we did; he just doesn't remember; ever.) When I saw this idea on Pinterest, I knew I would be using it for Doc. At least this way, there's a tangible reminder that Disney is coming!

I started with an 8"x8" shadow box, a dremel tool with a rotary cutting bit, and this gorgeous Disney subway art available for download from Eighteen25.

Cutting through the frame was weird. It wasn't wood, and it smelled like it was plastic; but given enough time I was able to get it cut. I had to cut an opening much larger than I expected in order to get the change to fall in easily, but once it was cut and sanded it was easy to get the money to drop right in. I used a dentist pick tool to help line up the cut lines and to scrape away some stubborn shaving bits.

I printed out the subway art and cut it to fit the 8x8 frame. I decided to cut off "Disneyland" since we would be going to Walt Disney World - and Doc is a stickler for details. As an added bonus, the more change we put in it, the sturdier the frame bank became. I assume there will be a tipping point for this. We may have to encourage paper money instead of coins!

All in all, the bank was a fairly easy project (once the littles were well away)! I highly recommend trying it. Imagine the possibilities! Until next time, may all your days be filled with fairy dust!

DIY Disney Popcorn Bucket Makeover

We are savers; I admit it. I love all things Disney and I hate to toss even the smallest items. I'm always convinced I can find a way to use them all! And I love all the different designs that come on those souvenir popcorn buckets in the Disney Parks. And since we are constantly in need of snacks, we tend to collect a LOT of buckets.

So what do you do with all those popcorn buckets after all the popcorn has been eaten in the parks? Here's our list of top 10 ideas for reusing your bucket that would make Jiminy Cricket (and his environmentality campaign) proud:

1. Disney Movie Night! Why not reuse those buckets for the same purpose they were intended for? Fill them with your favorite popcorn and pop in your favorite Disney movie and remember the magic!
2. Bath Time! While we are at the parks we find these to be the best bath toy. Even at home we like to use them for washing the kids, and washing the dog. 
3. Picnic Buckets: We like to fill each bucket with an individual picnic for the park or field trip days. With food allergies, it's better to be safe so we always pack our own food.
4. Airplane Snack Buckets: I like to use all our leftover snack credits from the dining plan to fill up these buckets with Disney treats to have on the way home. There's nothing better than a little Disney magic to soften the blow of leaving The Happiest Place On Earth.
5. Berry Picking Pails: We love to pick our own berries in the strawberry and raspberry fields all summer. These are the perfect size for small hands and clean up easily too.
6. Sand Toys! We have been known to take these with us to Lake Michigan to build sandcastles and dig giant sand pits. The handles make it easy to tote water too! And when you are going back and forth it keeps your sunscreen separate from the other items in your beach bag. No spills!
7. Backseat Trash Cans: Our road trips to Disney have been long and the car seems to get trashed in no time! One line of defense against this is making sure they have a place to put all their trash. These buckets can attach to the headrest in front and they hold a lot!
8. Trick or Treat Bucket: Obviously the halloween themed buckets would be perfect for this!
9. Play Kitchen Utensil Holder: With Little Chef in our cottage, we have a fairly extensive collection of things in the play kitchen. We use one of these popcorn buckets to corral all the utensils meant for the kids.
10. Lego Bin: This bucket is the right size to carry a whole lego project and it's instructions for a road trip or even just a quick trip to Grandma's house.

There you have it! Ten ways to reuse those Disney popcorn buckets once you get home. Until next time, may all your days be filled with fairy dust!

DIY Disney Trip Command Center

Spring Break planning is in full swing here in the cottage and it's hard for the littles to comprehend what is about to take place. I devised this command center as a sort of daily reminder and planning center for our upcoming trip to Disney's Hilton Head Island Resort. You can expect a trip report on this particular vacation, as we have never done it and I have found very little in the way of reviews on line.

I decided to use the very cute Disney countdown paper chain that I saw on CapturingMagic's Pinterest board. It was so easy to do using Lisa's tutorial for the Mickey ears loops. This was a great way to involve the littles. They may not know what to expect, but they know we are counting down to something!

I also put out these souvenir money jars for each of the kids. This was a great way to encourage good behavior. We awarded a dollar a day for good days for the littles and for no missing assignments for Doc. Watching their trip money grow was a great incentive for them. And what busy mom can't use a little extra help in encouraging kids to be good?

I also made my own subway art for the display area. I like thinking about all the possibilities of this trip: ice cream, campfires, lazy days, the beach, games. If you would like to download it, feel free. You can find my Disney's Hilton Head Island subway art right here. I would recommend printing it at around an 85-90% scale if you want it in an 8x10 frame.

Finally, I put our road trip basket (from our 2013 Wilderness Lodge trip!) on the table as a place to put all those little things that "would be great for the car" but have a way of disappearing before a trip. This way it's all centrally located and easy to pop in the van when we are ready to go!

If you have other command center ideas I'd love to hear about them. I like this so much I think I'll be doing another one for our Walt Disney World trip in October! Until next time, may all your days be filled with fairy dust!

DIY Savings Bank for Disney

Here in the cottage, we have always followed the same rule my parents set up for me regarding buying souvenirs in the parks. They gave us a set amount (and later we earned our own money). That was all we had to spend. If they purchased something for us it was their prerogative, but we knew even before asking that the answer was probably going to be no. (This didn't prevent my sister from asking - ever.)

For Doc, out of sight is out of mind; and before you know it we are leaving and he is complaining that he didn't know it was so close to Disney and why didn't we remind him? (Of course, we did; he just doesn't remember; ever.) When I saw this idea on Pinterest, I knew I would be using it for Doc. At least this way, there's a tangible reminder that Disney is coming!

I started with an 8"x8" shadow box, a dremel tool with a rotary cutting bit, and this gorgeous Disney subway art available for download from Eighteen25.

Cutting through the frame was weird. It wasn't wood, and it smelled like it was plastic; but given enough time I was able to get it cut. I had to cut an opening much larger than I expected in order to get the change to fall in easily, but once it was cut and sanded it was easy to get the money to drop right in. I used a dentist pick tool to help line up the cut lines and to scrape away some stubborn shaving bits.

I printed out the subway art and cut it to fit the 8x8 frame. I decided to cut off "Disneyland" since we would be going to Walt Disney World - and Doc is a stickler for details. As an added bonus, the more change we put in it, the sturdier the frame bank became. I assume there will be a tipping point for this. We may have to encourage paper money instead of coins!

All in all, the bank was a fairly easy project (once the littles were well away)! I highly recommend trying it. Imagine the possibilities! Until next time, may all your days be filled with fairy dust!