May 26, 2023 • 35 mins
In this episode, Kris and Vanessa are joined by Mandy from Magic Spotters. Her shop features custom small pennants that can be clamped to strollers, wheelchairs and scooters.
Earlier in the show they discuss tips and tricks for traveling to Walt Disney World with kids, especially those under the age of 5.
- Magic Spotters Instagram Profile
- DisLove Episode Traveling with a Toddler
- Baby Care Centers at Walt Disney World
For all the latest news about our episodes follow us on Instagram @dislovewithvanessaandkris or on YouTube.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
Welcome to the Disney Love podcast with
Vanessa and Chris . I'm VanessaFerguson. And I'm Chris
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Johns .
Speaker 1 (00:11):
We would like to welcome you to show number 130
and for any listeners joiningus for the first time, our show
features things we love atDisney. And in each episode we
have a guest who creates DisneyMagic for our listeners at home
or on their Disney vacation.
From vacation planners toproduct producers, our guests
can bring Disney Magic intoyour life.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
And as a reminder, we would love for a review . So
if you, wherever you listen,please leave us a five star
review. We'd be soappreciative.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
Ian , we always like to give shout outs to people
who leave those reviews onfuture episodes. And on today's
show we'll be joined by Mandyfrom Magic Spotters. Her shop
features custom small pennantsthat can be clamped to
strollers, wheelchairs, andscooters. She has some super
cute designs, so we're excitedto share all about her shop
(00:59):
with you. And today we have avery special topic that goes
along well with Mandy'sbusiness. We're diving into the
wonderful world of traveling toWalt Disney World with a little
one. And I think most of thesetips will really apply to that
under five crowd. But if youhave a wide range of kids with
you, you'll find some of theseuseful tips as well. And we did
(01:21):
do a show about this a fewyears ago, but we wanted to
update it. We did it back wayback in 2020, right after we
took our daughter on her firsttrip to Disney. So we thought
it was time to do an updatedepisode and of course learn
about some new tips we'velearned over the last few
years. And hopefully all ofthese can make your next
(01:42):
vacation a little lessstressful if you have a little
one with you. Now, I will saythere are a couple of caveats
to things. Our daughtertravels, I think a little bit
different than a lot of kids.
Number one, she will stay outlater.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Oh yeah, she's a a night owl.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
. Yeah,
she's a night owl and now she's
a little bit older so she'snever, she hasn't been one
where she's had to, we've hadto stop in the middle of the
day for a long nap. But I thinka lot of these tips are gonna
be helpful for you across theboard. Now to start out, the
first tip really revolvesaround the baby care centers.
Our last trip, we haven't hadto use this like we used to,
(02:20):
but I will say these arewonderful. They're in all four
theme parks and especially whenyou have those younger ones,
they uh , are a space where youcan take 'em to feed them,
change them if you're nursing,all of those things. They are
really wonderful. And the greatthing is that because they have
them, it allows you a chanceto, like our daughter, on a
(02:41):
couple of our first trips, shefell asleep in her stroller. We
went into the baby care center,was let her sleep in her
stroller and then when she wasawake we went back out. And
that way it saved us fromhaving to go all the way back
to the resort. If you forgetsomething, like they have all
kinds of baby medicine formula,diapers, wipes, all of those
sorts of things that you canpurchase, even sunscreen and
(03:03):
medications for little ones,which is helpful. And they are
located in each park. So makesure to check out now in Epcot,
they're with um , construction.
You wanna check to see whereit's at right now. But Magic
Kingdom, it's over by theCrystal Palace at Hollywood
Studios. It's near guestrelations towards the front of
the park and in Animal Kingdom,it's to the left of the tree of
(03:26):
life right before you enter thebridge into Africa. So all of
these are a little bit morecentrally located towards the
front of the park. So you wannakeep that in mind when you're
timing 'em . And I found theywere always extremely clean.
They even have like a kitchenarea with a microwave and a
sink. So if you're preparingbottles, if you have little bit
older kids, which our daughterwas a toddler age when we took
(03:48):
her around the first time, theyhave a little seating room with
a TV and tables and stuff. AndI just found these were helpful
compared to what you find in alot of other places. What did
you think Chris ?
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Oh, it was really nice. I mean, well set up ,
well stocked, very niceenvironment.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
Now the second most important thing I think when
you are at the Disney parks isa stroller. Now we have a
really cool, like our personalstroller is a nice fold up one
that travels well, like it fitsin an overhead compartment. But
I will say we personally findit is so much better to rent a
bigger stroller. And even ifyou did own a bigger stroller,
(04:25):
like I wouldn't bother takingit on the airplane, I would
just rent one. And we'vepersonally used Orlando
Stroller Rental the last fewtrips, but there are a lot of
other companies. And what doyou think? I like running the
bigger stroller to hook thingsto , and
Speaker 2 (04:39):
Especially in in , if you have people in your
group, it's just so nice tohave a bigger stroller so you
can take the load off insteadof having have each person have
a backpack. You can, especiallywith the bigger strollers, they
have a little bit more storagespace and it just makes it so
much easier if you're taking agroup.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
Yes. And so one of the things is that a lot of the
stroller companies will eitherdrop off, some of 'em will drop
off at the airport. Now onecatch is we usually fly into
Sanford, so we haven't beenable to utilize that. But the
rest of 'em , they will alsomeet you at your resort if
you're staying off property.
(05:13):
There's a number of the hotelswhere they can leave them right
at like Bell Services, if youare staying on Disney property,
there's a few like approvedvendors, but most of 'em , what
they'll do is they'll just meetyou. So you set up a time date
and time and a location at aresort and they will meet you.
And Chris has met and picked upour stroller several times.
Really
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Easy. You just, you , they're in a big white van
most of the time. They're veryfriendly and they just have the
identification real simple topick up and very simple to drop
off.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
And even the last time we were there, we were
leaving the day we wereleaving, we were going to Epcot
for part of the day and we wereeating at at the Beach club.
Even though we had been stayingat Saratoga Springs, we had the
stroller dropped off at thestart of our trip at Saratoga
Springs. And then when we wereleaving and we were gonna be at
(06:04):
Beach Club, they were able topick up the stroller there. So
that worked out well. We wereable to have the stroller at
the park, drop it off, head offto the airport, no problems at
all. So I already mentionedthat there's the Orlando
Stroller rental company. Theyhave the, everything from like
double strollers, joggingstrollers, lightweight
strollers. They are the onesthat we've used quite a few
(06:25):
times. There's also MagicStrollers, which is another
popular company they have .
They even have special needsstrollers, which I know can be
helpful for families if you'renot able to bring that on your
own. They have large canopiesand a few different features
that some of the other onesdon't have. There's Kingdom
Strollers. I know a lot ofpeople use them as well. They
(06:46):
have add-ons, like ring coversand cooler bags. They have a
lot of good delivery optionsfor families as well. Some
other ones that are out there,baby Wheels, Orlando a baby's
best friend, really just kindof look out and see what's the
best option for you. I've heardgreat things about most of
these com , about the , I knowthree companies that people
(07:07):
have used. A couple of theother ones also have great
reviews. So I don't think youcould really go wrong with any
of these. I think it's betterto rent your own stroller from
an outside company rather thanwaiting and getting to the park
and renting a stroller. Numberone, the strollers at the parks
are not as useful I thinkbecause they're, the materials
(07:27):
are made out of , they're theheavier plastic, you can't take
them with you. And that's onething that's nice is that once
you rent it, you're able totake it to Disney Springs. You
have a stroller. The strollerthat's been brought to you can
take it if you're going toanother park. Like we, we've
gone to SeaWorld when we'vebeen in Florida and we have
that stroller with us all thetime now. And they also have
(07:50):
good options. They fold down.
Well now Chris has always beenthe one that's kind of been the
stroller folder upper , I don'tknow if that's the right word
Speaker 2 (07:59):
To come . You know, these new strollers are just
designed so well, they'relightweight, they're very easy
to maneuver. And it's just beena real blessing to have because
our daughter, she rides verywell and usually we have at a
minimum five people in ourgroup, sometimes six. And so
it's very helpful and she's notthe biggest child to, you know,
put other people's bags andthings. So yeah, they're very
(08:20):
easy to use and you know, ittakes a couple of times just to
learn, but once you figure outhow to do it, it's real simple.
And I think the only realchallenge is that they're just
to a degree so big yeah, isthat they're a little hard on
the bus just because you haveother people, but for the most
part it works out real well.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
So I will say that's one tip. I think that when
we've stayed on SkylinerResorts, that's been helpful
because then you going to Epcotor to Hollywood Studios, you
just push on and you're rightthere. Same thing if you are on
a monorail resort, you beingable to just get right on the
monorail and go to MagicKingdom or over to Epcot is
great. A couple other thingswith the strollers, because so
(08:59):
many people rent strollers,make sure you have something
that is gonna be able to labelyour strollers so you avoid any
mixups. Our friend Mandy thatwe'll be talking to Will of
course has these awesomespotters that you can get to
commemorate your trip, whichare super cool. And one thing
that you wanna make sure isthat be mindful of where you
park your stroller and watch.
(09:21):
Because often sometimes theymove the strollers like at from
one part to another part aftera show. So for instance, I know
we went to the Finding Nemoshow at Animal Kingdom. They
had you park the strollers inone area and then when you got
out of the show the strollerswere somewhere else. So having
a spotter on it is reallyhelpful or some sort of sign
(09:42):
that way you can find it veryeasily. And even if you have
older kids that don't walk aswell, I suggest getting a
stroller cuz you're talking, Imean you're walking on average
eight to 10 miles a day, whichis a lot for
Speaker 2 (09:56):
Kids. Definitely.
And then that way for a smallone, you know, our daughter is
enthusiastic but we can'texpect her to go that long. And
even then the other optionwould be Wonder two of us have
to hold her and we, you know,we go in off peak times but
still 80 degrees to either havea child in your arms or on your
shoulders is a lot. And thestroller just makes it so much
nicer.
Speaker 1 (10:17):
And you might wanna consider, I know when we've
gone in hotter months, I'vetaken one of those fans that
can clip onto the stroller. Ialways have the clips that you
can add your hook extra bags toon the stroller handle. That's
always a must as well. So justa few things that consider
strollers. Another thing whichwe talk about all the time on
(10:39):
this show is about meals. Andone tip that we always
encourage people to do is takeyour child before they turn
three. Number one, they getinto the parks for free but
they also eat for free in mostinstances. So if they're under
age three they can share froman adult's plate or if you're
at a buffet or a family style,they get to eat for free. And
(11:02):
then of course once the diningplan uh , returns, they also
get free meals on the diningplan and the , we did this
right before our daughter'sthird birthday and it was just
awesome to not have to pay forher food to have it all
included. And we went to a lotof character meals where it is
family style or buffet soyou're able to feed them and if
(11:25):
you have multiple kids in yourfamily, if you have one or two
under three, that's of greatsavings. And I also suggest,
besides the savings for any agekids , I think character dining
is well worth the cost and theinvestment. When you have kids
we always try to do at leasttwo character meals and it's so
(11:45):
much fun to be able to havethat extra time with the
characters with your kids. ButI think you get better photos
than that that than we'vegotten in the theme parks. What
do you think with the charactermeals ? Definitely and
there's a couple of ourfavorites which we'll talk
about. I will say probably someof our favorite character meals
that we've done recently withour daughter have been Garden
(12:06):
Grill Restaurant at Epcot. Thatof course is in the land
pavilion. It's family style ,it's good mix of food. So if
your , your kids might be alittle fuss or it's more
American style food so they'lltypically like it. Mickey is
there and friends so that'sgreat because if you don't
wanna stand in line for Mickey, you'll get Mickey there.
Another great one that hasMickey and Friends is Tusker
(12:29):
house. And we went there on ourdaughter's first trip and it
was super fun cuz they havetheir safari outfits and they
have a good buffet for theadults. It's nice cuz they have
a nice mix of different Africaninspired entrees, which is
super great. We really enjoyedwhen we just went to Cape May
for breakfast. Their characterinteraction was really great.
(12:53):
And there you do not haveMickey though, so that's
something to keep in mind.
Depending on what your child'sfavorite kid or favorite
characters are from DisneyJunior , you can go to
Hollywood and Vine . Weactually not taken our daughter
here at breakfast. They havethe Disney Junior breakfast and
lunch characters and thosevary. But then in the evening
(13:15):
they have Mickey Mini andFriends and they have a buffet
and the dinner one the mini andall of them will be dressed in
seasonal outfits. So I've beenthere a Halloween, I've been
there at springtime. So theyalways have really cute outfits
and that. So that's over atHollywood Studios. Chef
Mickey's is always a greatoption at the contemporary
(13:37):
resort. Now if your child ismore into the princesses and
not really Mickey, you can goto Cinderella's Royal table,
which I think I would like togo take our daughter here,
Chris at Cinderella's RoyalTable. They now have
Cinderella, Ariel and Bell.
Wow. Which I think our daughterwould like that a lot . Yes .
So we definitely need to gocheck that out cuz we've not
been there with her. And thenthere's lots of other things
(13:59):
you can go to be our guestrestaurant, which is the uh ,
magic Kingdom they and theevening you'll see Beast from
Beauty and the Beast and it'sjust so really cool if they're
really into Beauty and theBeast to show they will really
like the immersion there justlots of great options for
restaurants with kids that theywill really be able to enjoy.
(14:23):
Now of course when you're atthe parks, you're there, a lot
of times you wanna ride ridesand not every little one, even
if they're older, they mightnot be tall enough to ride all
the rides. I know ourdaughter's a little bit shorter
than most kids her age. She hasa little shorter stature so
there's gonna be still somerise for quite a few years I
think before she'll be able toride them. But they have this
(14:46):
great option for parents, it'scalled Rider Switch . And
essentially instead of havingto wait in line twice or if you
don't have Genie Plus orsomething, what you can do is
you stand in line, you you goto the Fast Pass or to the
Genie plus entrance and you letthe cast member know that you
wanna do right or switch. Andwhat they will typically do is
(15:08):
they will have one person standin line and the other person,
they'll have you meet them atthe exit or they will have you
give you some sort of returntime. It's really nice because
the person who's not waiting inline can entertain the little
one while they're waiting forthe other person to ride. We
did this not too long ago at,tell 'em what happened when we
(15:31):
were at test track when youwaited for me in the , at the
rider Switch.
Speaker 2 (15:38):
Yeah. It was really nice. They um, allowed me to
just kinda take a spot at the,and then when Vanessa was done
they allowed us to do theswitch and it was seamless.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
But the irony is, is our daughter is actually just
now tall enough but she hadfell asleep so we were gonna do
the rider switch so that way wecould both ride it. But she had
fell asleep. She woke up by thetime I was off and they were
doing the rider switch andbecause she was tall enough
they let her ride with Chris .
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Yeah. And she did a great job. She's not afraid of
much and even the , you knowthe seven , what is it, 65
miles an hour. Yes.around the curve. She handled
that like a champ . But yeah,they were super nice and just,
you know, when she wassleeping, she was sleeping when
she was awake she got on theride. Yes.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
. So even if
your little one just is not
comfortable writing something,you can also do the writer
switch, which is a big help Ithink for everyone as well. Now
there's lots of other thingsthat we could spend time
talking about from souvenirs toother like specific attractions
that are awesome for littleones. But I think really a good
(16:44):
important tip is to remembertaking time to get those
memories and even we were justtalking to some friends not too
long ago and talking to themabout making sure that you take
advantage of things likegetting the photo pass.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
Oh definitely. And it's just such a nice piece and
I think, you know, the onething is people go, well the
photo pet's so expensive, I'llsave a couple of dollars. And
we've talked to so manyphotographers, whether it be on
the cruise , also in the park,they're experts, they know the
poses, their camera is a lotbetter than yours. And so,
especially with folks trying todo something on a phone, why
spend all that money at Disneyand then use your phone for the
(17:19):
only source of photos andwhat's wonderful And if you're
with a bigger group you justsplit the cost. But it's just
such a wonderful way to getgreat memories
Speaker 1 (17:28):
And those magic shots that you can get and then
special moments with thecharacters. And I think
especially for the characters,it's nice to have it because
then you're able to enjoy themoment with your child as
they're in um , engaging withthe characters. We had a really
great experience with Marita atMagic Kingdom on our last trip
(17:48):
and the PhotoPass person gotsome really cool pictures of
those interactions. And if it'syour child's first trip or even
if it's a later trip, alwaysconsider bringing an autograph
book. I usually buy those aheadof time so you can I buy 'em at
the outlet or if I buy 'emoffline or something, get
something personalized. Ourdaughter's first trip, it was a
(18:11):
kind of a pain to carry aroundbut we took a mat , a photo mat
and that was for an eight by 10picture and we had all the
characters sign it and then Iwas able to do a collage photo
that had all of the pictures ofthe characters that had signed
the outside. So take that time,enjoy these trips with your
little ones, whether it be yourown child, if you're going with
(18:33):
a group and it's a familymember or a friend's kid,
hopefully these can be sometips that can make your trip
that much more enjoyable andyou can really take in those
memories and have a wonderfulvacation. Give us just a few
minutes and we'll get our callup with Mandy and you can hear
how her product can make yourtrip with little ones even
better. We'd like to welcomeMandy to the show. Her shop
(18:56):
Magic Spotters has really coolthings that you can attach to
your strollers, scooters,anything like that to find it
in the park because I don'tknow about all of you but I
know we've lost our daughter'sstroller in the parks for
before so we're really lookingforward to hearing about her
shop. She lives in Wilmington,North Carolina with her husband
and her three kids, afive-year-old, three-year-old,
(19:18):
and a one-year-old. She's aformer Disney cast member and
like all of us, she hateslosing her stroller at the
parks as well. So we'd like towelcome Mandy to the show.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
Hi guys. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
Now we always start off asking people what are some
of other things that they enjoyat the Disney parks because of
course we all like traveling toDisney and right now we've been
asking people what is yourfavorite snack at any Disney
Park?
Speaker 3 (19:47):
So Oh that's so tough cause yes , there's just
a a thousand good snacks andthen do you go sweet or savory
or , um, but I, I think the onethat is just my all time
favorite is little random, butthere's this roasted nut cart
in Adventureland Oh , okay .
Where they do like glazedalmonds and Oh nice . I think
(20:07):
now they've combined it with apopcorn cart but it smelled so
good and they were always sodelicious. So I think that's my
all-time favorite snack. Um,but it's got a lot of close
competition so
Speaker 1 (20:20):
For sure. And you know what Chris loves to get
like flavored nuts and stuff,so we'll have to check that out
next
Speaker 3 (20:25):
Time. Oh , it's so good. It's so good.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
Now of course we have you on cuz we'd love to
hear about your business. Andwhat are the products you offer
connected to Disney?
Speaker 3 (20:37):
So I make , um, stroller spotters, which is
basically , um, something youcan attach to your stroller to
kind of make it stand out, makeit easier to find in the park.
Um, I've got a , a lot ofdifferent designs and each one
is personalized , um, with yourfamily's name or a fun phrase
that you like. Um, and we do itin holographic vinyl or glitter
(21:00):
map , Mickey Ears goes , youname it, it's customized for
you so that when you're in the1000 black strollers in the
parking lot and then the castmembers move them all across to
the other side, you can findyours super quick . There's no
doubt where your at ,
Speaker 2 (21:18):
You know . And with that , what was your
inspiration to start yourbusiness ?
Speaker 3 (21:21):
Um , so I have been going to busine regularly,
forever. Sure. But when I firstwent with my , um, one-year-old
, um, several years ago , uh,I, that was the first time I'd
had a stroller in the park andit was just a whole different
experience. And we actually hadour stroller moved and could
(21:42):
not find it. Oh yes. .
Um, it got moved in Tune Townand then it just got moved to
somewhere. I did not think theywould've moved it. Um, and then
I went online to try to buysomething and I just didn't, it
just wasn't out there , um,what I was looking for. And so
I decided to just make itmyself and the next time I win
I made my, my little spotterand took it down there and I
(22:06):
got stopped a lot and peoplewere like, where'd you get
that? That's so cool. And thenI just decided , um, you know
what , maybe maybe there's aneed for this . So I'm the only
one who does a , a raisedspotter, which makes such a
difference from a distance.
Now.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
That's something I was gonna say is that I noticed
that there a lot of people maketags. I've seen people do tags,
but we usually rent a strollerwhen we go down, so we have a
little bit bigger one. Andthat's one of the things that I
think is so unique about yourproduct is that you have it
raised. So when there's 50strollers sitting together, you
(22:42):
could definitely be able to seeit there.
Speaker 3 (22:44):
Absolutely. The the ones that tie down are, you
know, it's certainly a , abetter way. So hopefully nobody
accidentally takes yourstroller. Right. But if it , in
my situation when my strollergot moved to a location, I was
not expecting it , it wouldn'thave necessarily solved that
problem , um, just because it,it would still be below my
eyesight. Um, so this ensuresthat you will quickly see it
(23:07):
pretty much anywhere
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Now. We always like to find out from our guests .
How do you think your productsadd Disney Magic to your
customers lives?
Speaker 3 (23:17):
Uh , well I think it is , for me, one of my favorite
parts about Disney outside of,of course just being there and
going is the planning. Yes. Andso I think that I try to be a
fun start to the trip. Um, Itry to always work with a
customer, get exactly what theywant. It arrives, it's packaged
(23:40):
in a fun way. It looks great.
And I think people get reallyexcited about like, oh, oh, I
can't wait to to use this. So Ilove kind of that anticipation
and like being a part of that,like it's coming. Right .
. Um , and then inaddition to that, of course,
like it is stressful whenyou're traveling with children.
Um, Disney is magical fun, butit can also be not fun
(24:03):
at moments . Yes. Um , so Ithink that it , it's just kind
of another way to, to not onlymake your your stroller a
wheelchair scooter or , orwhatever you wanna clip it to ,
um, fun and personalized andshow if it's your birthday or
your first trip or whatever.
Um, but it also prevents theproblem of someone accidentally
taking your stroller thinkingit's theirs or losing it and
(24:25):
spending, you know, 15 minutestrying to track it down. So ,
um, gives you more time to dothe stuff you wanna do.
Speaker 1 (24:32):
For sure. And I know we've gotten a chance to look
at some of your awesomedesigns, but could you share a
few of maybe your favorites?
Speaker 3 (24:39):
Yes. Ah , the favorites to see ?
Well, the, the most popular oneis are we do several different,
my first Disney trip, which isjust such a fun way to like,
you know, you have a baby or akid who is, it's the first time
there , it's a big moment, putit on their stroller, people
see it and they get excited too, uh, like, oh , it's their
(24:59):
first trip here. Ah . Um, so II love that one. Um, we also
do, oh gosh,
Speaker 1 (25:06):
I know you have ones for different attractions
Speaker 3 (25:08):
And things like that. Oh my gosh. Yeah. We have
, um, ones for, they have , um,spaceship Earth on them . We
have , um, a couple for AnimalKingdoms, small world , uh,
fireworks and best Day everMickey Heads . We've got a
little bit of everything and wedo have , um, several new
designs that we're gonna havecoming out this month. And
(25:28):
we're constantly kind ofchanging. If there's something
you want that you don't see,never hurts to, to send a
message and ask because we mayhave that o on the, on the
lineup anyway. And so yeah, we,we love coming up with new
stuff and making sure we're,we're getting all the parks and
the things people love so theycan really represent their,
their stroller or wheelchair or, um, scooter with the stuff
(25:52):
they love,
Speaker 2 (25:53):
You know. And one thing we often see is, you
know, where there's customizedshirts where it'll be, you
know, the Johns Ferguson familywhere we'll get shirts. I'm not
a real big fan of the matchingshirts. I've done it once
. But in that case are, would you be willing to do
something that might say likeour daughter's name and then
the family name? Yeah . So youcould customize something.
Speaker 3 (26:10):
Yeah, absolutely. So everyone, most of the spotters
have like a set design on oneside, and we have, I think, I
think we have around 25 up atthe moment. So you can pick
whichever one of those designsyou like. But the other side of
the spotter, which is, it'sbasically like a , a a penant
flag . Um, the other side ispersonalized with a name. So it
(26:30):
can be the Johnson family orClaire or Best Day ever, or,
you know, 2023 or anything youwant on that is completely
personalized with your fontchoice , your material choice.
And then we always put a littlefun Mickey hat or a mini bow on
top , just a little bit extra.
I feel like the kids always, mykids always like that part,
(26:51):
like, oh , I wanna go themickey hat of my name. I want
. So it's just , it'sjust cute .
Speaker 2 (26:57):
Well, and you hit on so many important things and
the one thing I like about yourproduct is that, you know, when
you want something, a uniquesouvenir and it's something
that, number one, it's, it'suseful, but what , because what
you make is such high quality,you're gonna take care of it
and you're gonna take it homeand it's something that you're
gonna keep. And I know like forus, you know , the one that I,
that really caught my eye isthe trick or treat because
we'll be in Disney in Halloweenor while around Halloween. Yeah
(27:20):
. The Halloween party for theHalloween party. Yeah . And
that's just a perfect way tokind of commemorate and make it
match. And then as we comehome, because I don't, I really
can't remember the last time I, I bought a souvenir, like a
shirt or something. But I knowthat your spotter would be
something that'd be awesome tobe on our wall.
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Oh, it's so cool.
And I love that Halloween one .
We, a lot of the spotters and Ithink all of the Halloween ones
have flu in the dark as well onthem . Oh, how cool. Which is
just so fun . So like ,there's, like I on um, I think
most of the Halloween ones, andwe have a Han and Mansion one
as well have that's, that youreally can't see during the
day, but at night once they're,you know, catch that light in
(27:54):
there, it , it , they glow onthere, which is so cool. Um,
but yeah, we, we have a lot ofpeople who , um, use them , um,
multiple times, multiple trips.
These are designed to last rainor shine, they're high quality
materials. Um , I've tested, I, I can't even tell you
, how many differentthings. Um Sure . But so arrive
(28:15):
where we're at today because Iwanted it to be something that
is durable and you don't haveto worry about like, oh, it's
gonna rain, is it gonna rain?
Maybe it's gonna rain. Right.
It's hot, it's cold, it will befine. So when people get home,
I, I've seen a lot of peopleactually people purchase them
specifically that put on theirbikes. Um , it's really hard to
(28:36):
find a bike flag, so it's, it'sperfect for that. Um , dog
trailers, oh my gosh, I do asurprising amount of dog
trailers too. Oh , how cute. Um, yeah, so they, they're really
good for anything. We use auniversal clamping system, so
it's basically just a , a highquality clamp. It attaches to
anything that's about twoinches or under. So if , if
(28:58):
it's, if you've got somethingthat's in that two inch frame,
it'll attach securely. Um, sothat, that makes it really
flexible with its use. So any ,anything you can imagine,
it'll, it'll pretty much attachto.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
Now for packing purposes, I know it has like
something to make it raised up.
Does that fold down or how isthat?
Speaker 3 (29:20):
So it doesn't fold down. It does unattach from the
clat . The , um, the clamp andthe fiberglass rod do come
apart. Okay . Um , which takesit down to around 18 inches, 18
and a half inches. So it willfit really comfortably in just
about any carry-on. Sure . Or ,um, packed in your suitcase.
It's not thick at all. Um, soit's, it's the length is the,
(29:44):
the hard part. The other nicething is like when you are,
like, if you have it clipped onyour stroller or wheelchair and
you go to get on the bus, ifyou loosen it a little and flip
it upside down and clip ithanging down, it folds right in
with the stroller. So it's Oh ,that's nice . Super convenient
for that . Yeah . Becausenobody wants to deal with when
you're at the bus at the end ofthe night.. Yes .
(30:04):
Prince struggled
Speaker 1 (30:05):
With a stroller before. Yes. That's
Speaker 3 (30:07):
A lot . Yes . We definitely tried to think of
those things that like, hey,what makes it , like, what is
practical? What is useful? Howcan we make this easier? Um, so
it , it is , it's pretty , um,easy to travel with and easy to
, to pack down.
Speaker 1 (30:23):
Now, if we were wanting to get one for an
upcoming trip, how soon inadvance should somebody place
an order?
Speaker 3 (30:30):
We'd like to have , um, at least five to 10 days as
our current processing time. Iwill say that I always try to
get them out way sooner thanthat, but with three little
kids, sometimes things happen and I have had to take
that full time . Um, but ifsomebody also reaches out and
says, Hey, I've got a lastminute trip, I, if I'm able to
(30:51):
get that to you, I'm gonna doit. Um , I wanna make sure that
they have the best trip theycan. I wanna be a part of it. I
wanna have fun. So if you dohave something last minute,
always feel free to reach out.
I can do everything I can toget it there and if not, you
know, maybe the next trip. ButI prefer to have about five to
10 days just to guarantee thatit's ready for you. Sure . And
(31:14):
you don't have to to doanything. Awesome.
Speaker 2 (31:17):
You know, and we've mentioned all your awesome
designs. Where can people go tofind them?
Speaker 3 (31:22):
Um, so right now the easiest place to find
everything is on Etsy and theshop name is Magic Spotters.
We're also on Instagram atMagic Spotters. You can see a
ton of different photos onthere. And we have a link to
our page there as well. Um,we're on Facebook as, as well.
I will say that I'm a littleguilty of being very busy with
(31:43):
all of these kids, and so mysocial media is sad a little
bit, but we're about to go fullsteam in the next couple weeks.
So , um, a lot of new pictures,a lot of new designs, a lot of
exciting stuff, different , um,uses and it's gonna be awesome.
So , um, if you, if you take alook today and and you're like,
wait a second, this is, this isa couple months old, just know
(32:05):
it's coming. So stick around,it'll be good.
Speaker 1 (32:07):
Well, we will make sure to share all of those new
things out as you get them soour audience can see 'em and of
course customers can find you.
We really appreciate you takingtime to join us today and
sharing about your business.
Speaker 3 (32:20):
Of course. Thank you so much for , um, having me on.
I, I really, really appreciateit. You guys are awesome.
Speaker 2 (32:26):
Thank you again to Mandy for joining us today.
Speaker 1 (32:29):
And now we are onto our two minute trivia and our
wisdom from Walt quote . AndChris , you are up with trivia.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
Vanessa, did you know, here's a early trivia
question. Okay . There are nota lot of trivia questions about
diapers,.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (32:43):
I searched for a bunch and I did unfortunately
did not come up with anything,but we're gonna , we did
discuss Disney photo Pass .
Yes. And there, there's not alot of photos either. I looked
up how many photos per day, howmany photos per year? So I
thought that'd be a goodquestion. Yeah , that would
Doesn't exist , unfortunately.
It is . If it doesn't exist inthe fir first page of Google
, I will not. No . Sowe're gonna do some a little
(33:06):
more basic, and this is aquestion, what was the first
year of Disney PhotoPass thefirst year?
Speaker 1 (33:15):
Okay. Well I'm thinking , I know when we were
in college, my family, wealways went on Mother's Day and
I don't believe they had photopassed then because they would
mail I'm dating, they wouldmail you a hard copy of these
special photos they took onMother's Day. So I'm gonna go
with, I'm thinking it's midearly two thousands, maybe oh
(33:37):
four or oh five, maybe oh five.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
I need a one date please.
Speaker 1 (33:41):
2005
Speaker 2 (33:43):
Close, but no cigar.
Speaker 1 (33:45):
When was
Speaker 2 (33:45):
It? 2004.
Speaker 1 (33:47):
Oh wow. So it was the year after I graduated from
college. So that makes sense.
Speaker 2 (33:51):
It was, yes. And I've searched high and low and
I still have not found anyfacts , but I would only
imagine because you figured howmany, how many photos do we
usually get per
Speaker 1 (34:02):
Photo pass ?
Speaker 2 (34:03):
Per photo
Speaker 1 (34:03):
Per trip? I would say on the low end, a hundred
on the high end , over 200.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
Okay. Well I'm gonna do my quick math. I estimate
Disney takes more than 2billion photos per year. Oh,
Speaker 1 (34:17):
I would guess
Speaker 2 (34:18):
You And that's just a number I just pulled out of
the air. Yeah , .
Speaker 1 (34:21):
So that is not trivia , but I that
makes sense though, because Iknew it was around for a couple
years by the time we gotmarried because when we got
married in 2008, we had lots ofgreat photos from everybody
from PhotoPass. So reallygreat. That was interesting to
hear. So let's go ahead and endwith our wisdom from Walt quote
(34:43):
. So I wanted to pick somethingabout kids because we were
talking about kids this episodeand it is our greatest natural
resource is the minds of ourchildren. And isn't that so
true? All the different thingsand ideas that they have and
just kind of some of the funthings that come out of their
mouth sometimes is always neatto hear. And so thank you so
(35:04):
much for joining us on thisepisode of the Dis Love podcast
with Vanessa and Chris . I'mVanessa. And
Speaker 2 (35:10):
I'm Chris . This podcast is not affiliated with
the Walt Disney Company or itsholdings and it is intended for
entertainment purposes only.
Welcome to the Disney Love podcast with
Vanessa and Chris . I'm VanessaFerguson. And I'm Chris
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Johns .
Speaker 1 (00:11):
We would like to welcome you to show number 130
and for any listeners joiningus for the first time, our show
features things we love atDisney. And in each episode we
have a guest who creates DisneyMagic for our listeners at home
or on their Disney vacation.
From vacation planners toproduct producers, our guests
can bring Disney Magic intoyour life.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
And as a reminder, we would love for a review . So
if you, wherever you listen,please leave us a five star
review. We'd be soappreciative.
Speaker 1 (00:39):
Ian , we always like to give shout outs to people
who leave those reviews onfuture episodes. And on today's
show we'll be joined by Mandyfrom Magic Spotters. Her shop
features custom small pennantsthat can be clamped to
strollers, wheelchairs, andscooters. She has some super
cute designs, so we're excitedto share all about her shop
(00:59):
with you. And today we have avery special topic that goes
along well with Mandy'sbusiness. We're diving into the
wonderful world of traveling toWalt Disney World with a little
one. And I think most of thesetips will really apply to that
under five crowd. But if youhave a wide range of kids with
you, you'll find some of theseuseful tips as well. And we did
(01:21):
do a show about this a fewyears ago, but we wanted to
update it. We did it back wayback in 2020, right after we
took our daughter on her firsttrip to Disney. So we thought
it was time to do an updatedepisode and of course learn
about some new tips we'velearned over the last few
years. And hopefully all ofthese can make your next
(01:42):
vacation a little lessstressful if you have a little
one with you. Now, I will saythere are a couple of caveats
to things. Our daughtertravels, I think a little bit
different than a lot of kids.
Number one, she will stay outlater.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Oh yeah, she's a a night owl.
Speaker 1 (01:57):
a little bit older so she'snever, she hasn't been one
where she's had to, we've hadto stop in the middle of the
day for a long nap. But I thinka lot of these tips are gonna
be helpful for you across theboard. Now to start out, the
first tip really revolvesaround the baby care centers.
Our last trip, we haven't hadto use this like we used to,
(02:20):
but I will say these arewonderful. They're in all four
theme parks and especially whenyou have those younger ones,
they uh , are a space where youcan take 'em to feed them,
change them if you're nursing,all of those things. They are
really wonderful. And the greatthing is that because they have
them, it allows you a chanceto, like our daughter, on a
(02:41):
couple of our first trips, shefell asleep in her stroller. We
went into the baby care center,was let her sleep in her
stroller and then when she wasawake we went back out. And
that way it saved us fromhaving to go all the way back
to the resort. If you forgetsomething, like they have all
kinds of baby medicine formula,diapers, wipes, all of those
sorts of things that you canpurchase, even sunscreen and
(03:03):
medications for little ones,which is helpful. And they are
located in each park. So makesure to check out now in Epcot,
they're with um , construction.
You wanna check to see whereit's at right now. But Magic
Kingdom, it's over by theCrystal Palace at Hollywood
Studios. It's near guestrelations towards the front of
the park and in Animal Kingdom,it's to the left of the tree of
(03:26):
life right before you enter thebridge into Africa. So all of
these are a little bit morecentrally located towards the
front of the park. So you wannakeep that in mind when you're
timing 'em . And I found theywere always extremely clean.
They even have like a kitchenarea with a microwave and a
sink. So if you're preparingbottles, if you have little bit
older kids, which our daughterwas a toddler age when we took
(03:48):
her around the first time, theyhave a little seating room with
a TV and tables and stuff. AndI just found these were helpful
compared to what you find in alot of other places. What did
you think Chris ?
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Oh, it was really nice. I mean, well set up ,
well stocked, very niceenvironment.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
Now the second most important thing I think when
you are at the Disney parks isa stroller. Now we have a
really cool, like our personalstroller is a nice fold up one
that travels well, like it fitsin an overhead compartment. But
I will say we personally findit is so much better to rent a
bigger stroller. And even ifyou did own a bigger stroller,
(04:25):
like I wouldn't bother takingit on the airplane, I would
just rent one. And we'vepersonally used Orlando
Stroller Rental the last fewtrips, but there are a lot of
other companies. And what doyou think? I like running the
bigger stroller to hook thingsto , and
Speaker 2 (04:39):
Especially in in , if you have people in your
group, it's just so nice tohave a bigger stroller so you
can take the load off insteadof having have each person have
a backpack. You can, especiallywith the bigger strollers, they
have a little bit more storagespace and it just makes it so
much easier if you're taking agroup.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
Yes. And so one of the things is that a lot of the
stroller companies will eitherdrop off, some of 'em will drop
off at the airport. Now onecatch is we usually fly into
Sanford, so we haven't beenable to utilize that. But the
rest of 'em , they will alsomeet you at your resort if
you're staying off property.
(05:13):
There's a number of the hotelswhere they can leave them right
at like Bell Services, if youare staying on Disney property,
there's a few like approvedvendors, but most of 'em , what
they'll do is they'll just meetyou. So you set up a time date
and time and a location at aresort and they will meet you.
And Chris has met and picked upour stroller several times.
Really
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Easy. You just, you , they're in a big white van
most of the time. They're veryfriendly and they just have the
identification real simple topick up and very simple to drop
off.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
And even the last time we were there, we were
leaving the day we wereleaving, we were going to Epcot
for part of the day and we wereeating at at the Beach club.
Even though we had been stayingat Saratoga Springs, we had the
stroller dropped off at thestart of our trip at Saratoga
Springs. And then when we wereleaving and we were gonna be at
(06:04):
Beach Club, they were able topick up the stroller there. So
that worked out well. We wereable to have the stroller at
the park, drop it off, head offto the airport, no problems at
all. So I already mentionedthat there's the Orlando
Stroller rental company. Theyhave the, everything from like
double strollers, joggingstrollers, lightweight
strollers. They are the onesthat we've used quite a few
(06:25):
times. There's also MagicStrollers, which is another
popular company they have .
They even have special needsstrollers, which I know can be
helpful for families if you'renot able to bring that on your
own. They have large canopiesand a few different features
that some of the other onesdon't have. There's Kingdom
Strollers. I know a lot ofpeople use them as well. They
(06:46):
have add-ons, like ring coversand cooler bags. They have a
lot of good delivery optionsfor families as well. Some
other ones that are out there,baby Wheels, Orlando a baby's
best friend, really just kindof look out and see what's the
best option for you. I've heardgreat things about most of
these com , about the , I knowthree companies that people
(07:07):
have used. A couple of theother ones also have great
reviews. So I don't think youcould really go wrong with any
of these. I think it's betterto rent your own stroller from
an outside company rather thanwaiting and getting to the park
and renting a stroller. Numberone, the strollers at the parks
are not as useful I thinkbecause they're, the materials
(07:27):
are made out of , they're theheavier plastic, you can't take
them with you. And that's onething that's nice is that once
you rent it, you're able totake it to Disney Springs. You
have a stroller. The strollerthat's been brought to you can
take it if you're going toanother park. Like we, we've
gone to SeaWorld when we'vebeen in Florida and we have
that stroller with us all thetime now. And they also have
(07:50):
good options. They fold down.
Well now Chris has always beenthe one that's kind of been the
stroller folder upper , I don'tknow if that's the right word
Speaker 2 (07:59):
To come . You know, these new strollers are just
designed so well, they'relightweight, they're very easy
to maneuver. And it's just beena real blessing to have because
our daughter, she rides verywell and usually we have at a
minimum five people in ourgroup, sometimes six. And so
it's very helpful and she's notthe biggest child to, you know,
put other people's bags andthings. So yeah, they're very
(08:20):
easy to use and you know, ittakes a couple of times just to
learn, but once you figure outhow to do it, it's real simple.
And I think the only realchallenge is that they're just
to a degree so big yeah, isthat they're a little hard on
the bus just because you haveother people, but for the most
part it works out real well.
Speaker 1 (08:35):
So I will say that's one tip. I think that when
we've stayed on SkylinerResorts, that's been helpful
because then you going to Epcotor to Hollywood Studios, you
just push on and you're rightthere. Same thing if you are on
a monorail resort, you beingable to just get right on the
monorail and go to MagicKingdom or over to Epcot is
great. A couple other thingswith the strollers, because so
(08:59):
many people rent strollers,make sure you have something
that is gonna be able to labelyour strollers so you avoid any
mixups. Our friend Mandy thatwe'll be talking to Will of
course has these awesomespotters that you can get to
commemorate your trip, whichare super cool. And one thing
that you wanna make sure isthat be mindful of where you
park your stroller and watch.
(09:21):
Because often sometimes theymove the strollers like at from
one part to another part aftera show. So for instance, I know
we went to the Finding Nemoshow at Animal Kingdom. They
had you park the strollers inone area and then when you got
out of the show the strollerswere somewhere else. So having
a spotter on it is reallyhelpful or some sort of sign
(09:42):
that way you can find it veryeasily. And even if you have
older kids that don't walk aswell, I suggest getting a
stroller cuz you're talking, Imean you're walking on average
eight to 10 miles a day, whichis a lot for
Speaker 2 (09:56):
Kids. Definitely.
And then that way for a smallone, you know, our daughter is
enthusiastic but we can'texpect her to go that long. And
even then the other optionwould be Wonder two of us have
to hold her and we, you know,we go in off peak times but
still 80 degrees to either havea child in your arms or on your
shoulders is a lot. And thestroller just makes it so much
nicer.
Speaker 1 (10:17):
And you might wanna consider, I know when we've
gone in hotter months, I'vetaken one of those fans that
can clip onto the stroller. Ialways have the clips that you
can add your hook extra bags toon the stroller handle. That's
always a must as well. So justa few things that consider
strollers. Another thing whichwe talk about all the time on
(10:39):
this show is about meals. Andone tip that we always
encourage people to do is takeyour child before they turn
three. Number one, they getinto the parks for free but
they also eat for free in mostinstances. So if they're under
age three they can share froman adult's plate or if you're
at a buffet or a family style,they get to eat for free. And
(11:02):
then of course once the diningplan uh , returns, they also
get free meals on the diningplan and the , we did this
right before our daughter'sthird birthday and it was just
awesome to not have to pay forher food to have it all
included. And we went to a lotof character meals where it is
family style or buffet soyou're able to feed them and if
(11:25):
you have multiple kids in yourfamily, if you have one or two
under three, that's of greatsavings. And I also suggest,
besides the savings for any agekids , I think character dining
is well worth the cost and theinvestment. When you have kids
we always try to do at leasttwo character meals and it's so
(11:45):
much fun to be able to havethat extra time with the
characters with your kids. ButI think you get better photos
than that that than we'vegotten in the theme parks. What
do you think with the charactermeals ? Definitely
there's a couple of ourfavorites which we'll talk
about. I will say probably someof our favorite character meals
that we've done recently withour daughter have been Garden
(12:06):
Grill Restaurant at Epcot. Thatof course is in the land
pavilion. It's family style ,it's good mix of food. So if
your , your kids might be alittle fuss or it's more
American style food so they'lltypically like it. Mickey is
there and friends so that'sgreat because if you don't
wanna stand in line for Mickey, you'll get Mickey there.
Another great one that hasMickey and Friends is Tusker
(12:29):
house. And we went there on ourdaughter's first trip and it
was super fun cuz they havetheir safari outfits and they
have a good buffet for theadults. It's nice cuz they have
a nice mix of different Africaninspired entrees, which is
super great. We really enjoyedwhen we just went to Cape May
for breakfast. Their characterinteraction was really great.
(12:53):
And there you do not haveMickey though, so that's
something to keep in mind.
Depending on what your child'sfavorite kid or favorite
characters are from DisneyJunior , you can go to
Hollywood and Vine . Weactually not taken our daughter
here at breakfast. They havethe Disney Junior breakfast and
lunch characters and thosevary. But then in the evening
(13:15):
they have Mickey Mini andFriends and they have a buffet
and the dinner one the mini andall of them will be dressed in
seasonal outfits. So I've beenthere a Halloween, I've been
there at springtime. So theyalways have really cute outfits
and that. So that's over atHollywood Studios. Chef
Mickey's is always a greatoption at the contemporary
(13:37):
resort. Now if your child ismore into the princesses and
not really Mickey, you can goto Cinderella's Royal table,
which I think I would like togo take our daughter here,
Chris at Cinderella's RoyalTable. They now have
Cinderella, Ariel and Bell.
Wow. Which I think our daughterwould like that a lot . Yes .
So we definitely need to gocheck that out cuz we've not
been there with her. And thenthere's lots of other things
(13:59):
you can go to be our guestrestaurant, which is the uh ,
magic Kingdom they and theevening you'll see Beast from
Beauty and the Beast and it'sjust so really cool if they're
really into Beauty and theBeast to show they will really
like the immersion there justlots of great options for
restaurants with kids that theywill really be able to enjoy.
(14:23):
Now of course when you're atthe parks, you're there, a lot
of times you wanna ride ridesand not every little one, even
if they're older, they mightnot be tall enough to ride all
the rides. I know ourdaughter's a little bit shorter
than most kids her age. She hasa little shorter stature so
there's gonna be still somerise for quite a few years I
think before she'll be able toride them. But they have this
(14:46):
great option for parents, it'scalled Rider Switch . And
essentially instead of havingto wait in line twice or if you
don't have Genie Plus orsomething, what you can do is
you stand in line, you you goto the Fast Pass or to the
Genie plus entrance and you letthe cast member know that you
wanna do right or switch. Andwhat they will typically do is
(15:08):
they will have one person standin line and the other person,
they'll have you meet them atthe exit or they will have you
give you some sort of returntime. It's really nice because
the person who's not waiting inline can entertain the little
one while they're waiting forthe other person to ride. We
did this not too long ago at,tell 'em what happened when we
(15:31):
were at test track when youwaited for me in the , at the
rider Switch.
Speaker 2 (15:38):
Yeah. It was really nice. They um, allowed me to
just kinda take a spot at the,and then when Vanessa was done
they allowed us to do theswitch and it was seamless.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
But the irony is, is our daughter is actually just
now tall enough but she hadfell asleep so we were gonna do
the rider switch so that way wecould both ride it. But she had
fell asleep. She woke up by thetime I was off and they were
doing the rider switch andbecause she was tall enough
they let her ride with Chris .
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Yeah. And she did a great job. She's not afraid of
much and even the , you knowthe seven , what is it, 65
miles an hour. Yes.
that like a champ . But yeah,they were super nice and just,
you know, when she wassleeping, she was sleeping when
she was awake she got on theride. Yes.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
comfortable writing something,you can also do the writer
switch, which is a big help Ithink for everyone as well. Now
there's lots of other thingsthat we could spend time
talking about from souvenirs toother like specific attractions
that are awesome for littleones. But I think really a good
(16:44):
important tip is to remembertaking time to get those
memories and even we were justtalking to some friends not too
long ago and talking to themabout making sure that you take
advantage of things likegetting the photo pass.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
Oh definitely. And it's just such a nice piece and
I think, you know, the onething is people go, well the
photo pet's so expensive, I'llsave a couple of dollars. And
we've talked to so manyphotographers, whether it be on
the cruise , also in the park,they're experts, they know the
poses, their camera is a lotbetter than yours. And so,
especially with folks trying todo something on a phone, why
spend all that money at Disneyand then use your phone for the
(17:19):
only source of photos andwhat's wonderful And if you're
with a bigger group you justsplit the cost. But it's just
such a wonderful way to getgreat memories
Speaker 1 (17:28):
And those magic shots that you can get and then
special moments with thecharacters. And I think
especially for the characters,it's nice to have it because
then you're able to enjoy themoment with your child as
they're in um , engaging withthe characters. We had a really
great experience with Marita atMagic Kingdom on our last trip
(17:48):
and the PhotoPass person gotsome really cool pictures of
those interactions. And if it'syour child's first trip or even
if it's a later trip, alwaysconsider bringing an autograph
book. I usually buy those aheadof time so you can I buy 'em at
the outlet or if I buy 'emoffline or something, get
something personalized. Ourdaughter's first trip, it was a
(18:11):
kind of a pain to carry aroundbut we took a mat , a photo mat
and that was for an eight by 10picture and we had all the
characters sign it and then Iwas able to do a collage photo
that had all of the pictures ofthe characters that had signed
the outside. So take that time,enjoy these trips with your
little ones, whether it be yourown child, if you're going with
(18:33):
a group and it's a familymember or a friend's kid,
hopefully these can be sometips that can make your trip
that much more enjoyable andyou can really take in those
memories and have a wonderfulvacation. Give us just a few
minutes and we'll get our callup with Mandy and you can hear
how her product can make yourtrip with little ones even
better. We'd like to welcomeMandy to the show. Her shop
(18:56):
Magic Spotters has really coolthings that you can attach to
your strollers, scooters,anything like that to find it
in the park because I don'tknow about all of you but I
know we've lost our daughter'sstroller in the parks for
before so we're really lookingforward to hearing about her
shop. She lives in Wilmington,North Carolina with her husband
and her three kids, afive-year-old, three-year-old,
(19:18):
and a one-year-old. She's aformer Disney cast member and
like all of us, she hateslosing her stroller at the
parks as well. So we'd like towelcome Mandy to the show.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
Hi guys. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
Now we always start off asking people what are some
of other things that they enjoyat the Disney parks because of
course we all like traveling toDisney and right now we've been
asking people what is yourfavorite snack at any Disney
Park?
Speaker 3 (19:47):
So Oh that's so tough cause yes , there's just
a a thousand good snacks andthen do you go sweet or savory
or , um, but I, I think the onethat is just my all time
favorite is little random, butthere's this roasted nut cart
in Adventureland Oh , okay .
Where they do like glazedalmonds and Oh nice . I think
(20:07):
now they've combined it with apopcorn cart but it smelled so
good and they were always sodelicious. So I think that's my
all-time favorite snack. Um,but it's got a lot of close
competition so
Speaker 1 (20:20):
For sure. And you know what Chris loves to get
like flavored nuts and stuff,so we'll have to check that out
next
Speaker 3 (20:25):
Time. Oh , it's so good. It's so good.
Speaker 1 (20:29):
Now of course we have you on cuz we'd love to
hear about your business. Andwhat are the products you offer
connected to Disney?
Speaker 3 (20:37):
So I make , um, stroller spotters, which is
basically , um, something youcan attach to your stroller to
kind of make it stand out, makeit easier to find in the park.
Um, I've got a , a lot ofdifferent designs and each one
is personalized , um, with yourfamily's name or a fun phrase
that you like. Um, and we do itin holographic vinyl or glitter
(21:00):
map , Mickey Ears goes , youname it, it's customized for
you so that when you're in the1000 black strollers in the
parking lot and then the castmembers move them all across to
the other side, you can findyours super quick . There's no
doubt where your at ,
Speaker 2 (21:18):
You know . And with that , what was your
inspiration to start yourbusiness ?
Speaker 3 (21:21):
Um , so I have been going to busine regularly,
forever. Sure. But when I firstwent with my , um, one-year-old
, um, several years ago , uh,I, that was the first time I'd
had a stroller in the park andit was just a whole different
experience. And we actually hadour stroller moved and could
(21:42):
not find it. Oh yes.
Um, it got moved in Tune Townand then it just got moved to
somewhere. I did not think theywould've moved it. Um, and then
I went online to try to buysomething and I just didn't, it
just wasn't out there , um,what I was looking for. And so
I decided to just make itmyself and the next time I win
I made my, my little spotterand took it down there and I
(22:06):
got stopped a lot and peoplewere like, where'd you get
that? That's so cool. And thenI just decided , um, you know
what , maybe maybe there's aneed for this . So I'm the only
one who does a , a raisedspotter, which makes such a
difference from a distance.
Now.
Speaker 1 (22:21):
That's something I was gonna say is that I noticed
that there a lot of people maketags. I've seen people do tags,
but we usually rent a strollerwhen we go down, so we have a
little bit bigger one. Andthat's one of the things that I
think is so unique about yourproduct is that you have it
raised. So when there's 50strollers sitting together, you
(22:42):
could definitely be able to seeit there.
Speaker 3 (22:44):
Absolutely. The the ones that tie down are, you
know, it's certainly a , abetter way. So hopefully nobody
accidentally takes yourstroller. Right. But if it , in
my situation when my strollergot moved to a location, I was
not expecting it , it wouldn'thave necessarily solved that
problem , um, just because it,it would still be below my
eyesight. Um, so this ensuresthat you will quickly see it
(23:07):
pretty much anywhere
Speaker 1 (23:09):
Now. We always like to find out from our guests .
How do you think your productsadd Disney Magic to your
customers lives?
Speaker 3 (23:17):
Uh , well I think it is , for me, one of my favorite
parts about Disney outside of,of course just being there and
going is the planning. Yes. Andso I think that I try to be a
fun start to the trip. Um, Itry to always work with a
customer, get exactly what theywant. It arrives, it's packaged
(23:40):
in a fun way. It looks great.
And I think people get reallyexcited about like, oh, oh, I
can't wait to to use this. So Ilove kind of that anticipation
and like being a part of that,like it's coming. Right .
like it is stressful whenyou're traveling with children.
Um, Disney is magical fun, butit can also be
(24:03):
at moments . Yes. Um , so Ithink that it , it's just kind
of another way to, to not onlymake your your stroller a
wheelchair scooter or , orwhatever you wanna clip it to ,
um, fun and personalized andshow if it's your birthday or
your first trip or whatever.
Um, but it also prevents theproblem of someone accidentally
taking your stroller thinkingit's theirs or losing it and
(24:25):
spending, you know, 15 minutestrying to track it down. So ,
um, gives you more time to dothe stuff you wanna do.
Speaker 1 (24:32):
For sure. And I know we've gotten a chance to look
at some of your awesomedesigns, but could you share a
few of maybe your favorites?
Speaker 3 (24:39):
Yes. Ah , the favorites to see
Well, the, the most popular oneis are we do several different,
my first Disney trip, which isjust such a fun way to like,
you know, you have a baby or akid who is, it's the first time
there , it's a big moment, putit on their stroller, people
see it and they get excited too, uh, like, oh , it's their
(24:59):
first trip here. Ah . Um, so II love that one. Um, we also
do, oh gosh,
Speaker 1 (25:06):
I know you have ones for different attractions
Speaker 3 (25:08):
And things like that. Oh my gosh. Yeah. We have
, um, ones for, they have , um,spaceship Earth on them . We
have , um, a couple for AnimalKingdoms, small world , uh,
fireworks and best Day everMickey Heads . We've got a
little bit of everything and wedo have , um, several new
designs that we're gonna havecoming out this month. And
(25:28):
we're constantly kind ofchanging. If there's something
you want that you don't see,never hurts to, to send a
message and ask because we mayhave that o on the, on the
lineup anyway. And so yeah, we,we love coming up with new
stuff and making sure we're,we're getting all the parks and
the things people love so theycan really represent their,
their stroller or wheelchair or, um, scooter with the stuff
(25:52):
they love,
Speaker 2 (25:53):
You know. And one thing we often see is, you
know, where there's customizedshirts where it'll be, you
know, the Johns Ferguson familywhere we'll get shirts. I'm not
a real big fan of the matchingshirts. I've done it once
something that might say likeour daughter's name and then
the family name? Yeah . So youcould customize something.
Speaker 3 (26:10):
Yeah, absolutely. So everyone, most of the spotters
have like a set design on oneside, and we have, I think, I
think we have around 25 up atthe moment. So you can pick
whichever one of those designsyou like. But the other side of
the spotter, which is, it'sbasically like a , a a penant
flag . Um, the other side ispersonalized with a name. So it
(26:30):
can be the Johnson family orClaire or Best Day ever, or,
you know, 2023 or anything youwant on that is completely
personalized with your fontchoice , your material choice.
And then we always put a littlefun Mickey hat or a mini bow on
top , just a little bit extra.
I feel like the kids always, mykids always like that part,
(26:51):
like, oh , I wanna go themickey hat of my name. I want
Speaker 2 (26:57):
Well, and you hit on so many important things and
the one thing I like about yourproduct is that, you know, when
you want something, a uniquesouvenir and it's something
that, number one, it's, it'suseful, but what , because what
you make is such high quality,you're gonna take care of it
and you're gonna take it homeand it's something that you're
gonna keep. And I know like forus, you know , the one that I,
that really caught my eye isthe trick or treat because
we'll be in Disney in Halloweenor while around Halloween. Yeah
(27:20):
. The Halloween party for theHalloween party. Yeah . And
that's just a perfect way tokind of commemorate and make it
match. And then as we comehome, because I don't, I really
can't remember the last time I, I bought a souvenir, like a
shirt or something. But I knowthat your spotter would be
something that'd be awesome tobe on our wall.
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Oh, it's so cool.
And I love that Halloween one .
We, a lot of the spotters and Ithink all of the Halloween ones
have flu in the dark as well onthem . Oh, how cool. Which is
just so fun . So like ,there's, like I on um, I think
most of the Halloween ones, andwe have a Han and Mansion one
as well have that's, that youreally can't see during the
day, but at night once they're,you know, catch that light in
(27:54):
there, it , it , they glow onthere, which is so cool. Um,
but yeah, we, we have a lot ofpeople who , um, use them , um,
multiple times, multiple trips.
These are designed to last rainor shine, they're high quality
materials. Um , I've tested, I, I can't even tell you
,
(28:15):
where we're at today because Iwanted it to be something that
is durable and you don't haveto worry about like, oh, it's
gonna rain, is it gonna rain?
Maybe it's gonna rain. Right.
It's hot, it's cold, it will befine. So when people get home,
I, I've seen a lot of peopleactually people purchase them
specifically that put on theirbikes. Um , it's really hard to
(28:36):
find a bike flag, so it's, it'sperfect for that. Um , dog
trailers, oh my gosh, I do asurprising amount of dog
trailers too. Oh , how cute. Um, yeah, so they, they're really
good for anything. We use auniversal clamping system, so
it's basically just a , a highquality clamp. It attaches to
anything that's about twoinches or under. So if , if
(28:58):
it's, if you've got somethingthat's in that two inch frame,
it'll attach securely. Um, sothat, that makes it really
flexible with its use. So any ,anything you can imagine,
it'll, it'll pretty much attachto.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
Now for packing purposes, I know it has like
something to make it raised up.
Does that fold down or how isthat?
Speaker 3 (29:20):
So it doesn't fold down. It does unattach from the
clat . The , um, the clamp andthe fiberglass rod do come
apart. Okay . Um , which takesit down to around 18 inches, 18
and a half inches. So it willfit really comfortably in just
about any carry-on. Sure . Or ,um, packed in your suitcase.
It's not thick at all. Um, soit's, it's the length is the,
(29:44):
the hard part. The other nicething is like when you are,
like, if you have it clipped onyour stroller or wheelchair and
you go to get on the bus, ifyou loosen it a little and flip
it upside down and clip ithanging down, it folds right in
with the stroller. So it's Oh ,that's nice . Super convenient
for that . Yeah . Becausenobody wants to deal with when
you're at the bus at the end ofthe night.
(30:04):
Prince struggled
Speaker 1 (30:05):
With a stroller before. Yes. That's
Speaker 3 (30:07):
A lot . Yes . We definitely tried to think of
those things that like, hey,what makes it , like, what is
practical? What is useful? Howcan we make this easier? Um, so
it , it is , it's pretty , um,easy to travel with and easy to
, to pack down.
Speaker 1 (30:23):
Now, if we were wanting to get one for an
upcoming trip, how soon inadvance should somebody place
an order?
Speaker 3 (30:30):
We'd like to have , um, at least five to 10 days as
our current processing time. Iwill say that I always try to
get them out way sooner thanthat, but with three little
kids, sometimes things happen
that full time . Um, but ifsomebody also reaches out and
says, Hey, I've got a lastminute trip, I, if I'm able to
(30:51):
get that to you, I'm gonna doit. Um , I wanna make sure that
they have the best trip theycan. I wanna be a part of it. I
wanna have fun. So if you dohave something last minute,
always feel free to reach out.
I can do everything I can toget it there and if not, you
know, maybe the next trip. ButI prefer to have about five to
10 days just to guarantee thatit's ready for you. Sure . And
(31:14):
you don't have to to doanything. Awesome.
Speaker 2 (31:17):
You know, and we've mentioned all your awesome
designs. Where can people go tofind them?
Speaker 3 (31:22):
Um, so right now the easiest place to find
everything is on Etsy and theshop name is Magic Spotters.
We're also on Instagram atMagic Spotters. You can see a
ton of different photos onthere. And we have a link to
our page there as well. Um,we're on Facebook as, as well.
I will say that I'm a littleguilty of being very busy with
(31:43):
all of these kids, and so mysocial media is sad a little
bit, but we're about to go fullsteam in the next couple weeks.
So , um, a lot of new pictures,a lot of new designs, a lot of
exciting stuff, different , um,uses and it's gonna be awesome.
So , um, if you, if you take alook today and and you're like,
wait a second, this is, this isa couple months old, just know
(32:05):
it's coming. So stick around,it'll be good.
Speaker 1 (32:07):
Well, we will make sure to share all of those new
things out as you get them soour audience can see 'em and of
course customers can find you.
We really appreciate you takingtime to join us today and
sharing about your business.
Speaker 3 (32:20):
Of course. Thank you so much for , um, having me on.
I, I really, really appreciateit. You guys are awesome.
Speaker 2 (32:26):
Thank you again to Mandy for joining us today.
Speaker 1 (32:29):
And now we are onto our two minute trivia and our
wisdom from Walt quote . AndChris , you are up with trivia.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
Vanessa, did you know, here's a early trivia
question. Okay . There are nota lot of trivia questions about
diapers,
Speaker 1 (32:42):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (32:43):
I searched for a bunch and I did unfortunately
did not come up with anything,but we're gonna , we did
discuss Disney photo Pass .
Yes. And there, there's not alot of photos either. I looked
up how many photos per day, howmany photos per year? So I
thought that'd be a goodquestion. Yeah , that would
Doesn't exist , unfortunately.
It is . If it doesn't exist inthe fir first page of Google
(33:06):
more basic, and this is aquestion, what was the first
year of Disney PhotoPass thefirst year?
Speaker 1 (33:15):
Okay. Well I'm thinking , I know when we were
in college, my family, wealways went on Mother's Day and
I don't believe they had photopassed then because they would
mail I'm dating, they wouldmail you a hard copy of these
special photos they took onMother's Day. So I'm gonna go
with, I'm thinking it's midearly two thousands, maybe oh
(33:37):
four or oh five, maybe oh five.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
I need a one date please.
Speaker 1 (33:41):
2005
Speaker 2 (33:43):
Close, but no cigar.
Speaker 1 (33:45):
When was
Speaker 2 (33:45):
It? 2004.
Speaker 1 (33:47):
Oh wow. So it was the year after I graduated from
college. So that makes sense.
Speaker 2 (33:51):
It was, yes. And I've searched high and low and
I still have not found anyfacts , but I would only
imagine because you figured howmany, how many photos do we
usually get per
Speaker 1 (34:02):
Photo pass ?
Speaker 2 (34:03):
Per photo
Speaker 1 (34:03):
Per trip? I would say on the low end, a hundred
on the high end , over 200.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
Okay. Well I'm gonna do my quick math. I estimate
Disney takes more than 2billion photos per year. Oh,
Speaker 1 (34:17):
I would guess
Speaker 2 (34:18):
You And that's just a number I just pulled out of
the air. Yeah ,
Speaker 1 (34:21):
So that is not trivia
makes sense though, because Iknew it was around for a couple
years by the time we gotmarried because when we got
married in 2008, we had lots ofgreat photos from everybody
from PhotoPass. So reallygreat. That was interesting to
hear. So let's go ahead and endwith our wisdom from Walt quote
(34:43):
. So I wanted to pick somethingabout kids because we were
talking about kids this episodeand it is our greatest natural
resource is the minds of ourchildren. And isn't that so
true? All the different thingsand ideas that they have and
just kind of some of the funthings that come out of their
mouth sometimes is always neatto hear. And so thank you so
(35:04):
much for joining us on thisepisode of the Dis Love podcast
with Vanessa and Chris . I'mVanessa. And
Speaker 2 (35:10):
I'm Chris . This podcast is not affiliated with
the Walt Disney Company or itsholdings and it is intended for
entertainment purposes only.
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