Monthly Archives: May 2010

A word from ‘Belle’…

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I’m Belle, the 16 year-old daughter of Carl and Ellie. My name isn’t really Belle, but for the sake of our anonymity that’s what I decided to call myself. As soon as my parents shared the idea of the blog with my sister and me, I was enthralled. I love writing, so I asked if I would be able to post something and they happily said yes. So here I am, 3 months after the blog has started and I’m FINALLY writing.

I absolutely love Disney World. Mom and Dad first took me when I was 5 years old. I still remember the first character I met- Meeko the raccoon from Pocahontas. From then on every time we take a trip down to Florida I get so excited. I have been to Disney World 5 times now when some of my best friends have never had the pleasure to go there at all, so I consider myself more than lucky. My favorite ride is test track and my favorite park is Epcot, I love everything in that park. I can’t say who my favorite character is to meet in the parks, but I can definitely say that my favorite princess will always be Belle, hence the name I chose. I find a lot of myself in her, what with the dramatic tendencies and having her nose buried in a book ninety percent of the time. Those were just a few things I’d let you know about myself relating to Disney, but I could probably go on forever if you asked me more.

Moving down to Florida is something I’ve always thought about, college wise, but moving away from my family always made me reluctant to the idea. Then the idea came that the whole family could go down with me in 2012 and everything just kind of fell into place. So now I’m searching with my dad for good animation colleges within an hour of Orlando (of course) and recently we’ve come across a great looking college called Ringling.

It’s my dream to work with Pixar someday, and from the point of eighth grade up to now, I’ve been working hard to get classes and the learning experience necessary to get a good scholarship for Ringling in the future because that school tuition is big bucks. I go to a charter school for arts in high school and I’m getting a great education in drawing and art history and I’m so glad I got the opportunity to join. A favorite teacher of mine is going to work with me and a few other people on gathering up a portfolio to show off to admissions directors at art college fairs and so forth. A few admissions directors even take time out of their busy schedule to visit our class and help us out one on one, so I’m definitely excited for next school year. The next trip our family takes to Florida will be sometime in the fall after my birthday, so when we go, dad and I are going to drive to Sarasota and check out Ringling for ourselves.

I’m looking into maybe having a part-time job at Disney when we move in the summer in 2012. I’m not sure what job I would apply for, but as long as it’s at Disney I think I could care less what it is I’m doing. So if anyone has any history at Ringling or Full Sail and wants to talk about it, I’m all ears. Any kind of insight into these schools is more than helpful, and will be appreciated tenfold!

 Belle Peters

De-stressing with Disney

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So I had one of those days today – a horrible day at work with a boss who just doesn’t get it. I know many people right now who are unemployed, dealing with ailing loved ones or themselves, and/or dealing with just the in’s and out’s of life.  YOU are the people I am talking to, which I feel most everyone has been hit by the hardship stick.  What do you do? How do you let the stress go, Disney style?  Read on to find out how pixie dust helps keep my sanity and will help you keep you yours.

Now, you may not have plans to move to Florida in 2012 like we do, BUT creating a goal for yourself that takes you to your happy place is certainly healthy for your peace of mind and soul.  The goal can be small or large, but don’t let anything get in the way of it. Plan a Walt Disney World vacation on paper or online and save it. You may not have the money for it yet, but having the idea will keep a smile on your face.  Every time you feel that stress coming on, think of all the fun things you are going to do on that trip.  On a personal note, Carl and I talk about our moving plans almost every single day. We walk 3-6 miles a day, and talk about all of the new experiences we are going to have in 2 years.  This walk was instrumental in healing my heart after my boss had ripped it out – thank you Carl.

I haven’t figured out what they put in the Disney Theme Park music that makes it soooo good, but I feel it could calm the fiercest beast on the planet. From a bad morning, or a crazy day, nothing can calm me more than Epcot Theme Park music. The start of “Soarin” is like the first sip of a Diet Coke or putting your sore feet up after walking all day.  So the next time you feel your pulse rising, grab you Ipod or Disney CD and throw on your favorite song – you will be thankful you did.

Another fun way to de-stress Disney style is to watch your favorite Disney Animated movie. How can you NOT smile and relax when Ariel is singing or when Gaston is puffing out his chest? I dare you not too! Our family is pretty obsessed with “Meet the Robinsons.” We always seem to be in a better mood after watching it, and seem to be very appreciative of each other as well.  Not only will the stress melt away, but it will be replaced with inspiration – give it a try!

Retail therapy is exactly that – therapy. It works the same for Disney fans, on and offline.  If you are one of the lucky ones to have a Disney Store in your area, take a ride over and enjoy the sights and sounds of the store. If not, go to the Disney Store online and enjoy looking at all of the deals – treat yourself to something fun and keep that feeling of joy until it finally ships to your home.

Last but not least, when I am bummed, I enjoy looking at scrapbooks and Disney pictures online.  I love to switch up my background on my lap top to some new Disney image - it’s always nice to see it when I turn my computer on. Surround yourself in Disney pictures that make you happy - hang your favorite in the bathroom to see as you brush your teeth or on the fridge when you go to grab a soda.  We recently created a bulletin board in our hallway devoted ONLY to our next Disney vacation. Here we pin-up our ADR’s, Disney mail, and anything else for the trip. We each pass it every day, and it always makes us happy to know it’s eventually coming in November. 

I hope this has helped you find a way to de-stress, Disney style, and to find peace in the pixie dust. Have a great Memorial Day Weekend – thanks to all who have served.

Lots of Sales Equal Happy Trails

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Did you ever think that all the extra stuff lying around the house could equal some serious cash to start off your Walt Disney World vacation?  Well, we did. We are here to tell you the ins and outs of having your own garage sale, and how to keep the Disney magic alive and well during your sale. Shall we?

First off, it starts with a spark. Because of our impending move in 2012, our thought process was to get rid of as much as possible now so when the move date comes, we won’t have as much to get rid of. Now,  we are being realistic…2012 is 2 years away and lots of time to gain more “things” so we know this isn’t an exact science, but we are giving it the good old college try.

We have spent the last 2 weeks cleaning out the house. Every day we would tackle a new room in the house and go through each cabinet and closet.  Once we got going, it was like a drug, we couldn’t stop!  We felt so good getting rid of stuff that it fueled our energy to find more.  We boxed all of the items up and stacked them in the garage, then got the tables we needed next.

We arranged the tables around the inside walls, then six tables down the middle of the garage.  We covered the tables that were dirty with table cloths, the rest we left as they were.  We organized the clothes to be down the center tables, then one section for household items, one for craft supplies, one for movies,  one for breakables, one for toys, and one for miscellaneous. We made signs over each table so items would be easy to locate for those looking for something specific. 

Once the tables were up, and the stuff was out, we marked a certain section after work each night.  Now marking in itself can be a chore, so take it in small bites.  Also, a word of advice:  What you originally paid for your said item, you will most likely get 25% its value at a yard sale, if not less.  Our plan was to sell in bulk to make a profit while making things move.  We priced all of the clothing 50 cents each with a large sign over each table, saving the time of marking each and every one.  This same concept can also be used on other large quantities of items such as books, movies, shoes, and bags. 

We advertised in our local paper, keeping it simple with a couple of key points.  The address, time, day, and certain items we wanted to highlight were all we put in.  Check with your local paper for specials or sales on your certain ad.

Make your signs on bright-colored paper, keeping it again VERY simple. Someone driving past has no time to stop and read your novel- write down your address, time, and day and add an arrow so they know where to turn.  Signs should be stable and a couple of feet above the ground for easier viewing from vehicles. Signs that are on the  ground are easily covered by other cars passing by, and signs too high tend to fall over from being too top-heavy.

We involved our kids, and our youngest especially wanted her own snack table. She and Carl baked cupcakes with Wall-E wrappers on them to sell so she could make her own money for a hamster.  We bought soda and bottled water to sell, as we have found going to rummage sales that it’s nice to enjoy a cold Diet Coke while shopping at one. 

Once the day was here, we got up extremely early to prepare the sale for our potential buyers.  We pulled everything out of the middle of the garage and lined the driveway. We always make sure to park our cars on the road to make room in our driveway, plus it makes it look like we have customers at our sale. 

So how can you add the Disney touch to your garage sale?  We set the mood at the garage sale by playing our Ipod touch in its docking station on Mouseworld Radio and other Disney stations.  We saved our Disney shopping bags from past trips, and used them to bag up our customers purchases.  Our family all wore bright Disney shirts so that people would know who to ask for any assistance needed.   We let our buyers know that the money was going towards our next Disney trip, which always brought smiles.  We ran out of time,  but we had planned to make Mickey cookies to sell as well. 

After a long day, we made enough for a down payment on our next trip. We decided on All-Star Movies, preferred Toy Story section, with tickets and table service dining.  We booked all of our dining today, and are now 147 and some odd days away from heading back.  We hope to get to Mickey’s Ver y Merry Christmas Party, and we are excited to enjoy the last days of the Food and Wine Festival. 

Thanks for reading, and have a great week!