As I scrolled through social media this week, I saw posts from many friends experiencing some Mickey Gras magic — a trip to Disney World during Mardi Gras break!
It brought back so many memories of our Mickey Gras 2019 and reminded me of the misery and magic of that trip.
The misery is in the work that is taking four kids ages 7, 6, 4, and 2 to Disney with two adults: me and my husband. The waiting in lines, making sure everyone is hydrated and blood sugars aren’t crashing (HELLOOOO HANGRY), the art of the compromise in the middle of a meltdown, hustling to and from Fast Passes and other desired attractions, parking the strollers, finding the strollers, cleaning up cotton candy vomit at 2 am.
Notice I didn’t say anything about booking rooms, meal plans, Fast passes, organizing itineraries, renting strollers. Know why? WE DIDN’T DO ANY OF IT. Our amazingly wonderful Disney agent Marissa at Castles and Cruises Travel did EVERYTHING. And she was hands-down the reason our trip was an immense success. Because when you are dealing with kids who think it’s fun to play a version of chicken called “touch tongues” while waiting in line, you need all the help you can get. Marissa helped us make the best decisions for our family regarding where to stay, how to eat, and even gave us a detailed itinerary recommending how we should structure each day IN 30 MINUTE INCREMENTS!
BLESS OUR LITTLE TYPE A PLANNING HEARTS!
Seriously, there are so many Disney agents out there, it is easy to find one who can work well with your family at NO cost to you #disneymagic!
So a Disney agent is my number one recommendation/takeaway from our trip and best piece of advice I could give anyone.
My number two is that the Venti drinks at Starbucks count as a snack credit, but double-check that fact, it was 2019 when we were there.
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My number three is GET THE STROLLER. They ARE a pain in the butt. They ARE cumbersome. They SAVED us. Our kids who have NEVER napped in strollers did on this trip because ain’t no tired like #disneytired. Our big kids could catch a break and have a seat when they were tuckering out on us. Everyone always had a seat for a snack. We could hustle everyone around if needed. AND my husband and I burned at least double the calories because we were pushing nearly 100 pounds of kids, stroller, and supplies.
Mickey Gras was magical for us, and while there was much complaining, and a few tantrums while we were in the park, ALL the memories MAGICALLY transformed into cherished ones a month or so after we returned.
