Travel - Pocketful of Joules

Four Years of BlogHer Conferences & Planning for BlogHer15

This year marks my forth BlogHer conference in a row, but I’m just as excited as I was before my very first conference. The nice thing about being a more ‘seasoned’ BlogHer conference attendee is that I no longer freak out as much about what to wear and what to expect.

In fact, I wrote a special post over on the BlogHer website, “What I’ll be Wearing at #BlogHer15” as part of their BlogHer University, so please stop by and check it out!

Every year I feel like I’ve walked away from the conference with something new and different.

BlogHer 2012 – New York: This was my very first blogging conference and I hadn’t been blogging for very long. I was SO intimidated by all the other bloggers and I felt like nobody would want to talk to me because I had such a small following. I didn’t really know anybody, so I just floated around and didn’t really make any real connections. After attending the conference, I wrote What I Wish I Knew Before my First Blogging Conference.

BlogHer 2013 – Chicago: Having one BlogHer under my belt, I felt like I was much more prepared for my second conference. I had made some connections online and was really excited to meet some bloggers I “knew” in person. For the first time, I had a total “summer camp” experience of just hanging out with a ton of amazing ladies. There was definitely some squealing involved. Here are a couple posts from that year: BlogHer 2013 in Pictures and What YOU Wanted to Know About BlogHer 2013.

BlogHer 2014 – San Jose: I totally felt like a BlogHer rockstar last year! Not only did I attend some fantastic learning sessions, but I was able to meet up with some of my blogging friends and had a BLAST. I also scheduled in some really fantastic brand meetings and events, so I really feel like I utilized every moment of every day. After the event, I kept in touch with my new contacts and was so thrilled to be able to work with them throughout the year. Here’s my breakdown after the event: BlogHer14: My Whole Experience Shoved in One Post.

Plans for BlogHer 2015
So now with BlogHer15 returning to New York, I’m starting to figure out my schedule. They’ve announced the learning sessions and some keynote speakers, so that’s the first thing that gets added onto my spreadsheet. As soon as the party schedule comes out, those will go on there too! I’m crossing my fingers that they decide to have another 5k, so I can get a workout in while in in NYC.

Shyness strikes me at weird times, so if you see someone that looks like this:

A photo posted by pocketfulofjoules (@pocketfulofjoules) on Jun 12, 2015 at 5:11am PDT

PLEASE be sure to say hi!!

I’m also hoping to be able to meet up with some brands while I’m in town. It’s a really great chance for me to make connections that I can then work with and build on throughout the next year. So, if you are a fashion, lifestyle or fitness brand representative coming to BlogHer or in the area July 15 – 19^th, please reach out to me at pocketfulofjoules@gmail.com so I can make sure to add you to my schedule!

Lastly, I need to schedule in some FUN! I’ll be rooming with Chrissy from Quirky Chrissy, so THAT will obviously be fun. I’m hoping to be able to see a Broadway show or two while I’m in town. Also, a girl needs to eat… and shop. So I’ll be making plans to run around like crazy again!

Now it’s your turn: do you have a BlogHer question that I haven’t answered? Are you attending BlogHer15 this year? Are you one of my awesome readers in the NYC area… let me know and maybe we can do a meet-up while I’m in town!

All About Disney World: What Worked & What Didn’t

We survived Disney World!
Actually, we more than survived it… we conquered it!

I told you all about our grand Disney World plans a couple weeks ago in this post, so now let’s see how everything worked out! Oh, and pictures. Lots and lots of pictures!

What Worked:

Our schedule – When working with Jenn from WDW Guru Travel, we planned out which parks to attend on which days based on historical attendance numbers, as well as booked our Fast Passes and planned out which rides we wanted to hit. All in all, everything worked out beautifully. We were able to ride every single ride we wanted with short waits (15 minutes tops), sometimes multiple times.

Jack LOVED the roller-coasters and I totally had a proud mamma moment when the guy behind us on the Seven Dwarfs Train couldn’t believe that my kiddo was not only riding in the front seat of the coaster… but he had his hand up!

The Quick Service Dining Plan – The dining plan was perfect for us. We were able to eat at a large number of different restaurants, had plenty of meals and snacks for the trip, and Jack was able to eat off our meals with no issues. It was also really nice to have it paid for in advance, so we weren’t having that ‘oh my god how much are we spending’ worry hanging over our heads for the whole trip.

Some of our absolute favorites were the LeFou’s brew and cinnamon roll at Gaston’s Tavern (Magic Kingdom), the seafood mac and cheese at Columbia Harbour House (Magic Kingdom) and the cinnamon sugar croissant doughnut (Epcot). The brunch selection at Chef Mickey’s (not on the dining plan) was also incredibly good and filled us up for most of the day.

Forgoing the Stroller – When we planned to leave the stroller at home, I totally gave myself an out saying we could rent one if needed. Well, we never actually needed one because Jack LOVED riding in my Ergo backpack. It was super convenient to put him on my back while walking from ride to ride, waiting in line, or watching the fireworks shows. It was an easy way to keep him safe, as well as allowed us to get from place to place much more quickly than trying to walk with a toddler.

The only drawback was that while my shoe choices were comfy for me alone (a pair of Toms and a pair of Chucks), but they weren’t up to the rigors of having an extra 35 pounds on my back. In hindsight, I could have used a more substantial shoe, like a pair of cross-training sneakers.

Jack’s Age – While I’m sure it would have also been nice to have Jack be a bit older, I really feel that he was a great age for the trip. By visiting Disney World a couple weeks before his 3^rd birthday we were able to take advantage of the fact that all kids under 3 are free (no park tickets or food plans are needed).

At 38” tall, he was able to ride all but the most crazy roller-coasters and he was thrilled with many of the park shows and characters. The electric parade and fireworks were super magical and his day was totally made when Daddy gave him his own Mickey Mouse toy for being such a good boy. We were even able to get him a special “It’s my Birthday” button which had cast members wishing him Happy Birthday all week long!

What Didn’t Work:

Upgrading our Room – When we booked our room at Pop Century we upgraded to a priority room so that we would be closer to the bus area. We figured that we would be walking around the parks so much that we’d love to save a little extra walking when hopping on the park buses in the morning. Well, apparently the resort was filled to capacity with teenage girls dance teams and they bumped us out of our reservation. They were able to compensate us by refunding one night of our room rate (about $80) and got us as close to the bus area as possible, but it was still a disappointment.

Planning for a Slow Week – We booked the first week of February because it was historically one of the slower weeks at the parks. Not this year. As I mentioned, our resort was jam packed FULL of teenage dance teams and it was pretty darn annoying. Entire teams of a hundred girls would shove past the families lined up for the buses, causing us to wait an additional half hour for another bus to come along. They filled the Pop Century food court area, making it difficult to dodge them to refill our coffee cups and apparently woke up other guests (not us) by practicing their routines outside at 2:00 am. Not cool at all.

Nap Time – Our plan was to leave the parks each day after lunch to have a few hours of nap time before returning each evening. Jack still needs a daily nap, so we figured that some quiet time each afternoon would be a great break each day. Well, nap time was a bust. On our first day at Magic Kingdom we woke up early to get to the park and then returned to the room for a nap. However, there were SO MANY people waiting for the bus to get back to the hotel that it took an hour (or more… it’s all a blur) to get back. By time we squeezed in a little nap and got back out to the park, we wasted a lot of the day AND Jack woke up in a terrible mood. We decided to sleep late the rest of the vacation and forgo nap time… and that decision ended up working out best for us. There were certainly some tantrums caused by an overtired kid, but that comes with the territory of having a toddler.

Fantasmic – On our Hollywood Studios day, we planned to see Fantasmic, a nighttime show featuring music, pyrotechnics, video projected on water, and fireworks. We got there a bit late, so the entire amphitheater was super full (I read somewhere that it holds 10,000 people). We were able to find seats though and settled in for the show. About 5 minutes into it, we scooted up closer (like everyone else) and we were able to really see everything going on. Which was fine for like 5 minutes, but then it got kind of scary. Loud music, evil laughter, a little fire and some Disney witches/bad-guys. While this kind of stuff doesn’t usually bother him, Jack was super scared and asked to leave. So we left and beat the 10,000 other people to the bus station, so it worked out pretty well.

Now it’s time to BRING ON THE PICTURES!

Oh, one last quick note… when you look at pretty vacation pictures and think it was all sunshine and bubbles, please know that there were plenty of stubborn kiddo moods too. There were tantrums and lots of time outs for some truly terrible behavior. However, that’s life with a toddler and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise!

Did we have an awesome vacation? Heck yeah!
Would we do it again? Absolutely!

Are you a Disney lover? What is your absolute favorite part of a Disney World vacation?

Do You Have Any Disney World Tips?

We’re going to Disney World!!!!!

Can you feel my excitement? It is directly proportionate to the amount of exclamation points I use.

So yeah, there is a lot of excitement!!!

We weren’t actually planning to go to Disney World until Jack was much older, but there was a perfect storm of Disney planning and we jumped on it. I’ve been working with Jenn Hart from WDW Guru Travel, who has been nothing short of amazing. She has personally visited Disney World more than 70 times and has been an invaluable resource. Not only has she given me some amazing tips for which parks to visit on each day and where to find the best snacks, she’s also put together itineraries to match our specific needs. Oh and her services are complimentary. I’ll be raving more about her in my ‘we just got back from Disney’ post.

So, WHY did we decide to go to Disney now?
Money.

Did you know that kids under three years old get to enjoy Disney World for FREE?! That’s right; if your child is under the age of three you don’t have to purchase a park ticket OR a meal plan. This even holds true if your child turns three while they’re on the trip.

Since Jack’s birthday is coming up in mid-February and he’s OBSESSED with Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Jake and the Pirates, Doc McStuffins and more, we figured we’d celebrate early. He gets to enjoy the parks for free, he stays in the room for free, he eats off our meal plan for free. Free, free, free! We only have to pay for his plane fare, which is $200 round-trip.

So yeah, Disney makes sense and I can’t wait! I’ve been a bunch of times, but this will be the first visit for both Travis and Jack. However, if you would have heard my squeal when I opened the box containing our Magic Bands, you might think this was my first Disney trip too…

{Oh, and if you want to follow along in our Disney adventures, be sure to follow PocketfulofJoules on Instagram because I’m sure I’ll be posting lots of pictures while we’re there.}

I’m putting in a ton of work to make this trip one of the BEST TRIPS EVER and I’d love any tips you may have!

Our Plan:
Here’s the short version – we will be flying in on a Sunday and staying at the Pop Century Resort. We plan to walk over to the Art of Animation Resort for dinner and to check out the Car’s themed area because Jack LOVES Lightning McQueen and Mater. On Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we will be visiting the different parks (Magic Kingdom twice, Epcot, and Hollywood Studios), return to our room each afternoon for nap time to decompress and then go back out for evening fun. We leave on Friday, so we will be lazy in the morning and catch the shuttle bus back to the airport in the afternoon.

Here’s what I want to know:

Do you have Tips for the Plane?
The last time we flew with Jack he was only one year old and sat (aka squirmed) on my lap. This time, he will have his own seat. I’m planning to put him in a window seat so I can keep him contained and we decided to leave his car seat at home (we will not be needing it at any other time on the trip because the Disney Magic Shuttle Bus will be picking us up). I plan on packing his little backpack with some snacks, including some crayons and new coloring books, and also loading my Kindle with his favorite shows. Do you have any other tips to keep him entertained and quiet on the 2 ½ hour flight?

Do you have any favorite places to eat at Disney?
We purchased the Quick Service Dining Plan which gives us two quick service meals and one snack per day for both adults. We also receive one resort refillable mug (yay coffee) to use throughout our stay. Jack is welcome to eat off of our meals for no extra charge. We have also booked brunch at Chef Mickey’s so that Jack can meet Mickey and friends in a low pressure environment (instead of standing in line at the parks). Jenn gave us some tips on her favorite places to eat and I want to know yours too. Do you have a favorite quick service restaurant, meal or snack to eat in Disney World? Don’t worry, the Dole Whip Float is totally on my list!

Am I crazy for skipping the stroller?
I was considering renting a stroller for the parks (you can have it delivered to your hotel room for your trip and they pick it up when you leave), but decided to just skip the stroller altogether. With Travis and I both being pretty tall (he’s 6’4″ and I’m 5’7″) it’s awfully uncomfortable for us to use most strollers. Also, Jack doesn’t really sit in there that long and has never fallen asleep in one. Add to that the fact that I totally get stressed out worrying that our stroller will disappear and it seems more hassle than it’s worth.

My current plan is to forgo the stroller entirely and just take our Ergo carrier so I can throw Jack on my back for any longer walks. I figure this will allow us to get through any crowds easier (instead of weaving around and bumping people’s ankles), and give Jack a great vantage point for evening fireworks. As an added bonus, I’ll get quite a workout with a 32+ pound kid on my back. If the first day goes horribly, we can always rent a stroller at the park for the day. Have you done this? Am I insane for trying?

Any other tips?
Don’t worry, I already booked our Fast Passes (Jenn had an AWESOME list of rides you’d actually need a Fast Pass for vs. which ones were a total waste) and have an idea of the main activities we are going to do each day. I don’t want our trip to be TOO planned though, and am looking forward to nap time (aka Travis and Jack napping while I read a book) each afternoon to recharge for the evening entertainment. Do you have anything I should add to my “Don’t MISS this!” list?

I plan to do a post when we get back to tell you all about our trip (what worked and what didn’t) and maybe a post on dressing/packing for Disney World. Is there anything else you’d like to know?

Ok, go forth and leave lots of comments!

{PS. My brother will be house sitting & dog sitting for us while we are gone… which is the only reason I said anything before we left. Typically for privacy and security reasons I don’t talk about vacations until we come back from them.}