When my parents told me that we were going to spend Thanksgiving at Disney, I immediately went into planner girl mode. I planned a trip earlier this year with one of my best friends and used that trip as a starting point. However, since my little brothers had never been and have different preferences than two twenty-somethings, there were some tweaks that had to be made. I have a love affair with excel and used that to structure our trip!
My stepmom and I brainstormed matching shirts, but as a family of 6, buying new shirts added a large cost to an already pricey trip. For our first day, we grabbed inexpensive shirts from Uni Qlo. For the rest of trip, we coordinated with our favorite team’s game days! We are clearly a south Texas family with a little British flair!
One major difference between the trip I took with my friend and the one with my family was the use of Disney’s Memory Maker! I would HIGHLY recommend this for anybody going to Disney for multiple days or as a family seeking quality group pictures. For $169 (this is the lower price if bought in advance), you get unlimited digital downloads of all photos and videos taken in the park. This includes pictures in front of iconic Disney backdrops, ride photos, and pictures with characters. Here are some of my favorite character & ride shots!
Yes, I carried my Erin Condren Life Planner around all of Disney world for a week, but what resulted was a gorgeous photo shoot showing off my favorite life accessory! I brought some of my favorite EC covers to make each day special. The cover in the Hollywood Studios picture is a downloadable design I purchased from Design Pandemonium. Once they emailed me the file I uploaded it to the custom cover option on Erin Condren’s website.
(Use PANDEMONIACLAKEN for 20% your Design Pandemonium order!)
We spent the last day of our trip at Universal Studios. As a huge Harry Potter fan, I was so excited to experience this magic with my family. My dad read all the books with me when I was growing up and he appreciated every detail. My parents also made a deal with my brothers that if they read 3 books prior to the trip (we told them about it in July) – they would get special wand! The only one of my brothers, obviously a fellow Ravenclaw, who read enough was the youngest, Collin.
After I got home, I pulled out my Polaroid Zip to finish up my planner spreads. The Polaroid zip has had some bad press regarding picture quality and software. While I’ll agree, it’s not perfect, it definitely does the job! Here are my tips for getting the most from your pictures. I lighten them up (via the edit function in iPhoto) beforehand. Then I use the app called Pic Stitch to create a collage. I use the 3 x 3 collage option and only fill in the top 2 rows. Then I import that picture to the Zip app. This gets 6 square shaped pictures perfect for my ECLP.
By the end of the week, my feet were so tired but my heart was so full!
Some of the links provided are affiliate links and I do receive a small commission if you make a purchase using those links. This does not cost you any extra when you make a purchase. I very much appreciate your support in doing so! (Erin Condren Affiliate Link)
If you’ve never ordered from Erin Condren before, you can use my link to save $10 off of your first order by creating an account with my referral link.
Hi, I’m Laken! I am a twenty-something (barely) Texas girl living in New York City. My mission is to teach and inspire you to achieve your goals through planning and organization.