We like to tip on vacation to Mousekeeping, and this is the fun way that we do it! That way there is no mistaking "our" money for "Mousekeeping" money. 

I've got a FREE printable for you, so you can print these off too (I like to use colored cardstock but any paper works!) 

Print, cut and wrap around your tipping money, close with a smidge of tape, and you'll be spreading the magic too! 

Just click below on the picture to go that printable, and our others, or the file name to print! 

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See that battered and smudged looking post it in the picture? That's mine, and that way my very lo-tech way of how I was keeping track of my gift card savings. I totally did forget to add gift cards on there, because life is well, life, but the ones that are on there, you can see my discounted percentages. 

According to the post it, I bought $4,240 in gift cards. 

$2450  was bought at 13% off
$100 was bought at 12% off
$200 was bought at 10% off
$1190 was bought at 5% off
$50 was bought at 0% off. (I wanted "fun looking" gift cards from Shop Disney!)

That means that my $4240 in gift cards actually cost me $3580. I SAVED $660 on our trip by buying gift cards!

You can use these gift cards to pay for your vacation package, or tickets, resort or food. It's simple, and saves you BIG !
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How did I do this? You can read about it right here. It was simple, it didn't take any extra time, because you go to Target fairly often, right? Have a Best Buy nearby? I promise, it was simple, and easy. And I saved enough to pay for the hotels on the way down, the way back, gas and food. 

While you might not always be able to get the 12 or 13% off, since promotions change there's nothing stopping you from getting 5% off every day at Target, and quite possibly more if you keep your eyes open. I missed out on a lot of 20% offs, simply because the grocery stores offering those deals weren't near us, and we don't have a Sam's Club near by. 

While it might seem like a waste of time, or a drop in the bucket you get the $50 and $100 gift cards every so often with a promotion, it's easy enough, and your savings will more than make up for the few minutes time you spent buying them! 

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As we get ourselves ready for our next visit to our favorite destination, keeping the kids entertained on a long trip always takes some planning! 

This year, we are making some road trip binders that will be given to them, I thought I'd give you a peek inside. 

I took regular binders, I bought when school supplies were being clearanced, and added page protectors. Dry erase markers will be added to the front, and inside the pages willy vary, due to age. 

there will be maps, to trace our route, mazes, dot to dots, tracing, state into sheets, hidden pictures, spot the differences and so many other fun things. Many of them were printedFREE. Go here, from a previous blog post where I listed my favorite place to score these sheets! 
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I don't expect these to entertain the whole way, we do a two day drive, I do think for just a few dollars, the hour it will buy is well worth it! Do you do anything similar? 

So my picture looks a little wonky, and my ride crispy treats were rushed because someone kept trying to devour them, but they were incredibly tasty, shaped like Mickey, and reminiscent (and better tasting) of the ones we got our last trip at Pop Century. 

This next trip, we can't get those for our youngest, there could be cross contamination with his allergy, so once again, we are showing him we can make whatever he wants, at home! 

If you've never made these, they are super easy. The hardest part is putting the treats into the pan, but I have a trick for that. These are super easy to customize! If we didn't have an allergy, we'd be using candy melts to really decorate these! For a quick and easy job though, it worked well! 

The steps are easy! Gather supplies! You'll need cutters, butter, marshmallows, rice cereal, and wax paper, along with a pan. If you want to add chocolate, or sprinkles, you'll need that too! 
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Melt 3 TBS of butter in a pot, then add 10 oz package of marshmallows. Once melted, add in 6 cups of crisped rice cereal. Stir til combined, then press into a wax paper lined 9x13 pan. That's it! I usually spray cooking spray on my wax paper, and since I make double or triple batches, use that paper to press with my hands into the corners, and really compact it all so it won't fall apart. You could also just put it on a lined cookie sheet, fold the paper over and press that way.

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Once you cut your shapes, decorate! I even put a few onto Popsicle sticks! If you don't want to cut shapes, just decorate your big rectangle, and cut into smaller pieces. Or really large pieces!! These are so yummy, in 3 days, we'd eaten 4 batches, I'm a little embarrassed to say! 
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​Can't wait to see what you make!! 

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You've prepped your house for a Disney vacation, you prepped your car for your Disney vacation, and now it's time to prep your phone for a Disney vacation! 

There are some great app that are FREE and can REALLY make a huge difference in your Disney vacation! Here are a few: 

These first few are made by Disney. 

My Disney Experience does most everything from giving you menus, telling you where and when the characters meet, maps to help you navigate to the "Rapunzel", and more. While some people have complained that it drains their phone batteries, I personally have not had that issue. 

Shop Disney Parks is an app to help you locate the elusive Oswald Ears, or whatever else it is you are looking for. You can even shop away from the parks,and have it shipped to you! 

Play Disney Parks is the newest official Disney app! You'll find ways to enhance your wait time, and I don't want to spoil it, but it's so, so fun! 

These next apps, aren't official Disney apps, but are incredibly useful. 

Touring Plans  even if you don't have a paid subscription, there are some great things you can take advantage of, like menus, and crowd levels. If you do have the subscription, you can see your touring plan, and incredibly accurate wait times. 

Hidden Mickey's  if you want to try and spot them all, this all is for you! A treasure trove of info, maybe you'll be able to find Mickey every place you look! 

A weather app, with radar is super important to have, so that when it starts to rain, you can see if it's just a shower that's going to pass by, or something you need to get indoors for! 

​Those 6 apps on your phone, and you are set for any adventure at the park! I know we didn't mention all of the Disney apps, do you have a favorite we left off out list?