Marvelous Mrs. Morin

Sunday we have privilege of being hosted by Wine Bar George for their Wine Country Brunch and all I can say is GO! Prior to going I had heard nothing but good things, but I am a person who likes to keep and open mind and decide things for myself. Wine Bar George completely lived up to the hype. I can’t wait to go back and try even more of their incredible menu, but for now let me walk you through our experience.

For starters, I want to rave about our server, Orlando. He made the experience so much better. His knowledge of different wines and the menu was incredible. The wines he picked for us we found ourselves enjoying so much more than what we had picked for ourselves. At Wine Bar George you can get a flight of wine. I wanted to try several things so I explained to him the flavors I liked and I left it up to him. I was blown away by all three wines he brought. Wether you are experienced with wine or new to wine, I think your server can be helpful in making sure you end up with a wine you enjoy!

Wine Bar George truly is a culinary experience, using wine and cocktails to enhance an already flavorful menu. We ordered the chicken biscuit, the big board, key lime pie, Frisée Salad, and Burrata. We were blown away by everything we tried and impressed with how the wine brought more of the flavors to life. The brunch menu had both sweet and savory options, giving a large variety in dishes.

For me, Wine Bar George felt like an adult experience. While I love my children and love everything WDW and Disney Springs offers for children, I am glad we made this an adult only event. Being able to take the time to enjoy the atmosphere and the food and wine made it so we could process everything we were trying. Wether it’s for a date night, brunch, or a girl’s night out, I definitely recommend adding Wine Bar George to your list of places to try!

For more on Wine Bar George, make sure you check out the highlight reel on our Instagram!

Yesterday me and the kids headed to Disney’s Hollywood Studios to experience Minnie’s Halloween Dine at Hollywood and Vine! We were eager to get back to what has always been a favorite restaurant of ours, even if things were operating a little differently due to covid. Below is our experience and everything you need to know!

First things, the cost is $35 for kids and $59.99 for adults, but they do offer AP discount, DVC discount, and Tables in Wonderland. Having two smaller kids, I opted to just order one meal and have them split it. It was more than enough food for both of them. Characters walk around the restaurant, engaging from a distance and taking socially-distanced selfies with everyone. My kids and I still had a blast with the character interactions and I almost felt like it was easier for us to eat and enjoy the characters with this system!

The characters they had out were Minnie, Mickey, Goofy, and Pluto, who all rocked their Halloween costumes!! Minnie’s costume was my favorite and a little part of me wished they sold it for adults. The restaurant is no longer buffet either. Instead it is a three course meal of family style salad and bread, your choice of entree, and your choice of dessert. Me, my mom, and my sister all ordered different things and all of us were so impressed with our food.

The meal does take a little bit longer and with most restaurants not offering coloring pages, I do recommend bringing activities for smaller kiddos. I keep coloring books in my diaper bag if I know we are going to eat somewhere. Overall, we had a great experience. The food seemed elevated, the character interactions were great, and it definitely got us in the holiday spirit!

Please note that as I write this there has been no official announcement to if Universal Orlando will extend how long they are having the haunted houses, but on the chance they decide to continue this or open more houses, this is everything we learned!

Universal Studios Orlando opened two haunted houses this weekend: Bride of Frankenstein and Revenge of the Tooth Fairy. My first very important piece of advice is GET THERE EARLY. Unlike Hagrid’s you have to be physically inside the park to get a virtual pass for either of the houses. We got there at 8:20. The parks did not open until 9, but the line to get into Universal Orlando was all the way to the Islands of Adventure entrance. We were able to get into the park by 9am luckily.

To get a virtual pass, you will need to download the Universal Studios app. Link your pass as well. In order to get a pass you will need to allow the app to access your location as that’s what tells the app that you are in the park. If you don’t see at first, keep refreshing until it pops up. When you go to access it you will see a list of times, pick the times you want and say how many are in your party. If it says unavailable it will allow you to keep trying different times. If you are unable to get one, Universal does continue to drop times throughout the day so you can keep checking. Once you get into the virtual line, make sure you screenshot your pass in case the app glitches. The line itself once it’s your turn never took more than 30 minutes for us.

Once you get your passes you can leave the park if you want since you have already been accounted for. That information came directly from a park manager, so I would assume it’s good information. If you are looking for something to pass the time, I highly recommend checking out the Tribute Store or heading across the way and seeing all Islands of Adventure has to offer. The Tribute Store has an incredible beetlejuice set up and some deliciously scary snacks perfect for Halloween!

Now let’s talk about the actual houses because I know everyone is probably wondering how they work with covid precautions. Each group enters kind of on their own, that way they can make sure there is social distancing. Scare actors are then either six feet away or behind plexiglass. While I have heard some say they thought that the plexiglass gave away when the scare was coming, to me it was no different than when you saw a hole in a wall or curtain, you knew it was coming then as well. I personally rarely noticed the plexiglass and still jumped and screamed. You are required to wear masks inside the house at all times.

I thought the way they did everything was a swinging success. We had so much fun and honestly I am just so happy Universal brought us some scares. It is my hope that this will lead to more houses and more scares even during the week!

Yesterday officially marked the beginning of Walt Disney World’s Halloween celebrations and we were so excited that we were able to be there for all the fun. When Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party was cancelled we were of course disappointed, but the new take to Halloween is nothing short of magical! Disney brought their A Game, giving us all a not so scary screaming-good time.

The first thing I was over the moon about yesterday was the cavalcades. Disney still has the princess cavalcade, but they have also added Mickey and friends in Halloween costumes, A Nightmare Before Christmas cavalcade, Pooh and friends in costumes cavalcade, as well as the villains. The words of Boo to You echoed through Main Street, reminding us that Disney is still the best place to spend Halloween. I remember sitting on the curb for two hours to make sure I got a good spot for the Boo to You Parade. I’ve waited hours to meet Jack Skellington. Yesterday was the best of both worlds. With spontaneous appearances I didn’t feel that anxiety over missing one. Cavalcades happen multiple time throughout the day, allowing guests to enjoy more of their visit.

While there may not have been trick or treating, Disney did bring back several favorites for this season. I can honestly do a whole blog post on that, but for now what I will say is try the seasonal food! It’s a fun mix up from their normal menus. I can’t wait to go back and try the things that I missed out on yesterday.

Yesterday set an exciting standard for the rest of the year. It has me excited and looking forward to what Christmas at Walt Disney World will look like. I feel like I also really enjoyed the Halloween festivities not being a special ticketed event. Guests are invited to wear costumes to the park during the day. You can see special characters with a regular Magic Kingdom ticket. It really is a great compromise. Having small kids, the downfall to the party was always how late it went. I love that we can experience some of that party magic and still have our kids in bed by a reasonable hour.

If you are on the fence, I would encourage you to visit. This time of year is absolutely incredible and Disney has set a high bar. We cannot wait to share more with you as we explore everything Halloween at Walt Disney World has to offer!

Real talk, I am absolutely a #foodie. I love flavor and trying new things. I was also raised in the south, so me and fried chicken go hand in hand. When it comes to Walt Disney World or Disney Springs I like to mix things up and try something new. Yesterday we were invited to dine at Chicken Guy and they have now set the bar for dining going forward. Flavortown is the best way to describe what we experienced! From the sauces to the sandwiches and of course the milk shakes, we were blown away by everything we tried. So why should you try Chicken Guy? Let’s get into that.

I ordered the CG Classic which is now my favorite chicken sandwich ever. It’s topped with the special sauce, but with so many different sauces at Chicken Guy, the possibilities are endless. My other favorite sauces were Peri Peri and the Sweet Siracha BBQ. The mac and cheese has a breading on top and was also incredible. We tried their fries, loaded fries, chicken tenders, and their cookies and cream shake. We also tried every single sauce. There was nothing we tried that I disliked and I can be kind of picky. Even better? My toddlers DEVOURED their food. I am happy with any place that gets my kiddos fed and happy.

I also want to make sure I mention how incredible everyone who worked there was. They are extremely knowledgeable about the products they are serving and navigated us towards flavor and foods that we loved. They were kind and helpful towards me and my kids, so it’s a great spot for families. They have indoor and outdoor seating as well.

Even though the inside of the restaurant is smaller, they do a great job maintaining social distancing and keeping the entire place safe. With a hand sanitizing station at the entrance, plexiglass at order and checkout, and social distancing markers in line, we 100% felt safe dining there. We saw team members frequently cleaning and they had someone stationed at the fountain drinks to get beverages for you.

Honestly I can’t wait to bring my husband to eat at Chicken Guy. I know it has food my whole family loves and it’s located in such a great spot in Disney Springs. With parks closing earlier I definitely recommend heading to Disney springs at the end of your day for dinner. Try a shake, some sauces, and all the amazing food options they have to offer because who doesn’t need a little Flavortown in their life right now?

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When it comes to packing your diaper bag for Disney, it can be kind of overwhelming. Finding the balance between packing too much and packing too little can be a fine line, especially when the summer weather in Florida can be pretty unpredictable, so what do you actually need in Disney and what can you leave at home? Today I am going to walk you through what I think is actually necessary and what you can honestly leave at home.

Obviously I have the standard things in my diaper bag like diapers, wipes, bandaids, sippy cups, etc, but those are obvious ones. If you run out of those things, you can also go to the Baby Care Center and you will be able to buy any of those things plus baby food, pacifiers, and more. I want to break down the things that aren’t necessarily so obvious.

Let’s start with the elephant in the room. Right now masks are required for everyone ages 2 and up, so obviously you need to bring a mask, but I would actually bring multiple, especially for kids. On a hot day I go through 3-4 masks just from sweat. On rainy days I go through 3-4 because they get wet. Then you factor in things like kids dropping them, chewing them, all kinds of things, so definitely bring extras. Disney does sell some in the parks, but with them so in demand it is better to come prepared and have whatever you may need on hand.

You’re probably also thinking: “I have to bring hand sanitizer”. Prior to Covid, I always brought hand sanitizer with me. I had two bottles in my diaper bag at any given time, but with Walt Disney World’s new safety measures it is one less thing I can pack. Every ride, building, restaurant, essentially everywhere has hand sanitizer stations. Honestly it’s a great change and something I hope stays around. If you need more space in your diaper bag, leave the hand sanitizer at home because Disney has your back on that one.

The cooling towels I posted above I actually purchased at Walt Disney World. You can buy these basically anywhere, but I like these because they are Mickey. Cooling rags help a lot with the intense heat that we have during Florida summers. My Petunia Pickle Bottom diaper bag has a cooler on the bottom, so I wet these down, put them in a bag, and keep them cool with the help of ice packs. It helps me and my kids to stay cool, which is vital with this heat.

On the other side of the heat, are the Florida summer storms. They can come out of nowhere, so regardless of the forecast, I like to keep Grayson and Amelia’s raincoats with me. They are light weight and easy to roll up and out in the diaper bag. Plus these ones are super adorable and my kids love wearing them. It also wouldn’t hurt to bring one or two umbrellas, or rain ponchos.

While Disney has resolved the water issue, I try to always bring my Yeti water bottle with me. Any insulated water bottle will do. I have a giant one that I bring to fill the kids cups and sip from throughout the day. When it’s time to refill it, I like to go and order ice water from Starbucks and use that to fill the water bottle so we have the ice to keep any added water cold.

Some other small things you may want to consider bringing are a small fan, face wipes, hair ties, or a comb/hairbrush. Hopefully this will be helpful and give you a better idea of what you need or don’t need! As always, please message me with ANY questions and keep up with us by following along on Instagram. Happy weekend, everyone!

It was normal to get anxiety about Hollywood Studios even before Covid. Will I get a boarding group for Rise of the Resistance? Will the line for Runaway Railway be insane? Trust me, I get it. It’s stressful. As the home to Walt Disney World’s newest attractions, Hollywood Studios gets a lot of traffic. Here is my tips and tricks for doing everything you want to do at Hollywood Studios and MORE!

My first piece of advice, get there EARLY. We were lined up at the gate in our car at 9am, even though the park didn’t actually open until 10. They started allowing parking around 9:15 and we were in the park by 9:30. We walked QUICKLY back to Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, which they had opened early to help the lines not get so crazy. The wait said 45 minutes, we only waited about 35.

Boarding groups for Rise of the Resistance become available at 10am and 2pm, but the 2pm ones will only be released if they get through all of the 10am ones, which is difficult on days the ride breaks down a bit. You can get a boarding group through the My Disney Experience app. Starting at 9:45 I had my phone out and ready to go, keeping it on MDE. The Rise boarding groups became available RIGHT at 10am. I managed to get a boarding group for everyone in our party with no issue. My advice is to make sure you are there to get one of the 10am boarding groups. That means, again, make sure you get there early!

My next piece of advice is once you get your boarding group and ride Runaway Railway, avoid running back to Galaxy’s Edge or Toy Story Land. Believe me when I say everyone is running back there at opening and if you can hit those lands later in the day, you will see much reduced wait times. We chose to ride our two favorite thrill rides on the opposite side of the park. Rockin Rollercoaster was only 20 minutes, which was an accurate wait time. Tower of Terror said 55 because half of the ride was down, but we only waited 20. The seating on tower of terror is that there must be three seats and one row between groups. We definitely felt safe with the spacing.

At that point if you are needing a break from the heat, definitely check out Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy. Shows are every 15 minutes and they are keeping it pretty cool in there. Even with the mask on, I felt refreshed when I got out of there. At that point Rise had been down for a minute and it was saying we had 55 minutes until our boarding group would be called, so we decided to venture back to Toy Story land so the kids could get some rides in.

The wait times were great. Toy Story Mania was only 10 minutes, Alien Swirling Saucers was walk on, and even Slinky Dog only had a 30 minute wait. We did Toy Story Mania and Alien Swirling Saucers and then had a snack, by the time we did that, our boarding pass was called. We all went over so we could set up rider swap and then my parents took the kids back to Toy Story Land so they could ride those two rides again. Me and my husband headed on to Rise and we were beyond excited.

I am going to avoid posting photos of Rise on here for anyone who is trying to avoid spoilers. If you want to see the line and pre-show, definitely check out my Galaxy’s Edge Highlight Reel on our Instagram. We waited about an hour and then got on with no issue. The first part of the line is in the sun and it does get hot, but from there it is all inside and really cool. Rise is worth getting there early for. The imagineers created something truly mind blowing and if you skip it you really are not getting the full Hollywood Studios feel.

My parents rode next and we took the kids to do Toy Story Land for a THIRD time! They were not upset at all and we had a great time. Afterwards we walked Galaxy’s Edge and hit Smuggler’s Run which had a 10 minute wait, but honestly we walked on. We were given our own car which honestly I was happy about, although I was sad to see the pre-show no longer happening.

After that we decided to try and do Runaway Railway one more time and we’re easily successful! With only a 20 minute wait, we hopped in line. We waited only ten minutes and had a wonderful time. After that it was time to head home. The park was still open another two hours but at that point we had done everything. We caught the Pixar cavalcade on the way out and it was super cute.

Here are some other tips for Hollywood Studios:

• Joffrey’s, Starbucks, and the popcorn station with fountain drinks are all giving out free ice water. We would get water from there and put it in our water bottles.
• The cavalcades only happen towards the front of the park. If you want to see all of them, plan on most of your day being spent up there. The Pixar one was super cute, but we did miss the Disney Junior one which was a bummer.
• The indoor relaxation station is inside Launch Bay over by the Disney Junior dance party. Hollywood Studios feels so much hotter than the rest of the parks, so take advantage of that space. It’s a great place for little ones to take a nap as well.
• Take advantage of things like Muppet Vision 3D and Lightning McQueen Racing academy. They give you a much needed heat break and are both darling shows.
• Prioritize what you want to do, but honestly if you get there early you should be able to do it everything.

If anyone has any questions, of course please reach out! And of course, make sure you follow us on Instagram to keep up with the latest!

Epcot reopened last week and we couldn’t be happier! Even though we are the Magic Kingdom Morins, Epcot has always been our favorite park. I feel like it has something for all ages and inspires creativity, innovation, and a sense of a global community. With amazing food options, fantastic attractions, and the kid stations, Epcot has always been kind of a no brainer for us, so of course we were beyond excited when it opened back up.

Epcot currently opens at 11am and is open until 9pm. Although I prefer earlier mornings, these hours make sense for Epcot because so many people come in simply to eat and drink in the evening, especially if there is a festival going on, which currently there is. We got to the park right at opening and decided we wanted to conquer Future World first. The wait times were crazy. For Spaceship Earth, Journey Into Your Imagination with Figment, Nemo, and Living with the Land (which claimed a 40 minute wait), we only waited 5 minutes. Soarin’ did claim to have a 45 minute wait, but since I had tiny ones with me we weren’t headed to that one anyways.

Test Track was closed for the day (not sure why) and Mission Space is one I always skip (I am super claustrophobic), so we decided to head to Garden Grill to get lunch. One amazing thing right now is that we did not have a reservation for Garden Grill. We were able to walk up and be seated within 10 minutes. Garden Grill is family style and features Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale. I was so over the moon with the character interactions. I honestly almost like the new way better. Instead of the pressure to scarf your food and get that “perfect” photo, the characters are elevated in the upper seating area. They came and played with my kids from the platform and those moments were worth so much more than a photo.

My kids getting to see Mickey again after such a long time was pure magic. I would be lying if I said I didn’t get super emotional about it. Since we were dining my kids masks were able to be down and I was able to see the pure joy radiating from their faces, something I will cherish forever. Character dining is currently only available at Garden Grill and Topolino’s. I would say they are definitely still worth the money, especially Garden Grill since the food is family style.

After lunch we decided to head back to World Showcase. On the way we saw Pooh over by figment in the grass area. He was waving to guests and being his usual silly old bear self. While there are several cavalcades that go around World Showcase, like Mickey and Minnie and the princesses, the one I really wanted Amelia to see was Elsa and Anna. We had the best luck and as soon as we got into World Showcase we were greeted by the Elsa and Anna cavalcade. It was so amazing to see them again and Amelia was over the moon! The cavalcades are not on a schedule in order to avoid crowding, but I will say if you are in world showcase you will know when the cavalcades are coming. They play loud music kind of as a warning that they are coming and it gave us plenty of time to get in a good spot.

The line for Frozen looked intimidating. It said it was 40 minutes, but due to the social distancing measures, the line wrapped clear around the pavilion. It does get warm out in that sun, even with the umbrellas, but to our pleasant surprise it did move very fast and we were in that AC quick. We ended up only waiting about 30 minutes, which I am more than happy to wait for Frozen. The other ride in World Showcase is in the Mexico pavilion. While that line also looked long it was only about a 10 minute wait. That line was hard to social distance, so they had to put plexiglass in the line, which I will say feels very tight, but it goes quick.

As for the taste of Epcot, we didn’t try much while there. I look forward to trying all the booths when we go back. Not all of them are currently open and I know we are eager for the ones that say “coming this fall” to be open soon. It doesn’t necessarily feel like a real festival, but I am grateful for the effort made by Disney. The international cast members are deeply missed and that was the biggest thing I noticed about World Showcase. It just doesn’t feel the same without them. I will say though the lack of crowds have been fantastic and for the first time ever I have felt safe allowing my kids to be out of their stroller in world showcase. Before I was honestly always scared they would get trampled. I look forward to updating everyone as we document more of Epcot!

As always, please feel free to send me any questions and make sure you follow us on Instagram to keep up with all the latest 🙂

Yesterday I had so many emotions. I was so excited to be heading back to a Disney park, to be experiencing the magic. I tried not to over hype it in my brain, but that obviously impossible after waiting so long to get back to our happy place. Yesterday lived up to every dream and hope. The magic was alive and well, completely untouched from the new rules and regulations. It was magical, wonderful, beautiful, and more important, I felt safe.

Getting into the parking situation was weird. I arrived an hour and a half before park opening, trying to beat the rush to get in. When I pulled up the magic kingdom entrance I was told they weren’t opening the parking lot until 8, different from what they had done with cast member preview days. I went and parked for a little bit and then headed back at 7:50. Getting into the parking lot caused a lot of confusion. To avoid rushes at the ferry and monorail, they only allowed 100 cars at a time to park. It caused the entrance to get pretty backed up, but the thought is that it’s better to wait in your air conditioned car where you can easily social distance. I have to say I agree with the decision. I would much rather sit in my nice cold car than out in the baking heat.

Once we got into the parking lot, we faced no issues. We parked quickly and then headed to the temperature check. It was exactly what we experienced at Disney Springs and there were no surprises. Security however was pretty different. They no longer go through your bag. They had me remove anything metal/electronic from my bag and then walk through the metal detector with my backpack. It was a different process, but still super quick and easy. We chose to take the Ferry, which is what I would recommend for anyone with a stroller. Right now the monorail has plexiglass dividers, so you would need to fold up your stroller to ride the monorail right now. For me it just didn’t seem worth the hassle and I have always enjoyed the ferry. If you take the ferry, make sure your whole party is together in line, otherwise you will he split up.

Entering the park, all they did was scan my magic band. They didn’t scan a finger print. Before entering there are hand sanitizing stations. They also were turning away people who were not wearing the proper type of face covering. Before coming to the park, I highly recommend reading Disney’s specific guidelines for face coverings. You can find them on Walt Disney World’s website.

I would be lying if I said it was not emotional walking on to Main Street. The castle’s new paint is absolutely beautiful. Cast members greeted us with kindness and the phrase that made tears come to my eyes: “Welcome Home”. For the first time in a long time, we were home, and that was something to celebrate. Photopass cast members were all around the park, happy to take photos. There were no large crowds and we could navigate easily.

Getting on rides was so easy. We walked on to everything. We even did Seven Dwarves twice. With such low crowds, you no longer have to worry about fastpass or long lines. Every line has social distancing markers set up, so everyone did a great job. Every ride had hand sanitizer and the entrance and exit. I also saw cast members wiping down rides. Cars are not completely filled and they are either only filling certain rows, giving each party their own car, or spacing out the vehicles. Nothing about the ride situation made me feel unsafe.

Ordering food also became a lot less painful. Everything is mobile order and when your order is ready you can go in and pick up your food and sit at a table. Tables are marked so you can only sit at certain ones to promote social distancing. They are also constantly cleaning the restaurant. My only complaint would be water. Even though they were cleaning the drinking fountains, that was the only thing available unless you bought bottled water or ordered one from Starbucks. The bottle fillers were closed and restaurants were only giving cups of ice water if you ordered food. With how hot Disney is, water definitely needs to be more readily available. My advice in the meantime would be to make sure you bring lots of water. We definitely will be next time.

Sit down dining operates differently as well. Instead of being given a menu you scan a bar code with your phone and a menu will pop up. I didn’t mind it for me, but I do miss having kids menus for the little ones. Moving forward I will be packing coloring pages for my kids if I know we have sit down dining. The restaurant was super clean and it’s nice being able to go sit inside and take the mask down for a bit, especially with the Florida heat. We were able to get into skipper canteen without a reservation and I will be interested to see if that continues or not.

There are several cool off places around the parks. One of them is an indoor location and is in Sideshow Pete’s. There is also one in the tent area next to it which is a cool down area. The cool down areas are nice, but they are not large-family friendly. You can only have 4 people per table. Our group had 7, so we would have had to split up or little ones would have to lap sit, so that is definitely something to keep in mind. We didn’t feel the need to go into the cool down areas at any point. Instead we just took our breaks from the mask when we sat down to eat.

Characters are still out and about, you just have to social distance. We saw stitch in Tomorrowland, the country bears up on a balcony in Frontierland. We also loved the “cavalcades” or little mini parades. We saw Gaston riding his horse, Tinkerbell on a float, the fab five, and so many more. Seeing them out and about was so fun and added to the magic.

Overall, I would say only having one issue (the water) is pretty impressive considering all the new things that had to be put in place. We will definitely be going back to Disney and sharing everything they have to offer! Feel free to message me with any questions you may have and check out all our adventures on Instagram!

Mask wearing can be difficult at times even for adults, so when Disney announced that masks would be required for children ages 2 and up I was really concerned. I had no idea how we were going to be able to keep masks on our kids. My concern reached the point of me almost cancelling our passes because the idea just sounded impossible. The even harder part was that I didn’t just have one two-year-old to worry about. I have two two-year-olds. I was overwhelmed, nervous, and basically determined for it not to work.

But they I got a perspective change. As an adult who really did not like the notion of the mask, I went to Disney springs and wore my mask for the day. I was determined to keep an open mind. If I could do it, why couldn’t the rest of my family? Of course I saw children struggling with their masks. I saw adults struggling with their masks, but I am now to the point where I feel I can comfortably wear my mask and not be miserable. I know masks and Disney can seem like a scary combination, especially for kiddos, but here are all our tips for making masks bearable for your little ones!

1. LEAD BY EXAMPLE: for Grayson this one was huge. He idolizes his daddy, so we use that to our advantage. Whenever we leave our house James makes sure he is properly wearing his mask so Grayson can see it is what we are supposed to do.

2. GET MATCHING MASKS: This was another trip we used for Grayson. Since he looks up to James so much, I bought them the same mask so Grayson could be excited to match his daddy. I am not going to say Grayson was a superstar with his mask using this trick alone, but he kept it on much better when James was around compared to when he was just with me.

3. MAKE PICKING AND WEARING A MASK AN EXCITING EVENT: We purchased our masks from Disney Springs and majorly hyped up for the kids how exciting it was. We then allowed them to pick which mask they wanted. The Disney masks helped my kids to be excited about the masks. Amelia chose the princesses, while Grayson chose Star Wars. We made it seem like the mask was a huge prize that they were getting.

4. REWARD KEEPING THE MASK ON: We do a reward system for my kids when they keep their mask on the way they are supposed to. This doesn’t have to be anything big. We keep the prizes to under $5 for keeping the mask on, but it helps reinforce the idea that our kids have done a really great thing.

5. SING THEIR PRAISES: If you see me in the parks or at Disney springs soon, you will probably find me super annoying. Why? Because I will be gushing over my children like they have just cured cancer. Amelia is especially motivated by praise, so when she keeps her mask on we tell her how great she is doing. Cast members are wonderful about this too. The Cast Members at Disney springs will praise your little ones for keeping their mask on and I know for Amelia it means a lot more coming from them.

6. WHEN YOUR KID HAS HAD ENOUGH, GIVE THEM A BREAK: I can’t stress this one enough. You don’t want the mask to become a negative or traumatic thing. If your kid is melting down, or not having it, do not force them. Disney is super compassionate and gracious towards children and will not expect you to keep it on them the entire time. They know all you can do is try your best with little ones.

7. KEEP THEM COOL AND TAKE DRINK BREAKS: The Florida heat is really intense. Between the humidity and the actual temperature, I would be lying if I said the mask didn’t get warm. I am a big fan of cooking rags for keeping my kids cooled off and I also make sure they are in the coolest clothes I can find for them. If it will make them hot, I don’t let them wear it since the mask makes things warmer. We stick to light fabrics, shorts, and light weight clothing.

8. WORK TO YOUR CHILD’S SPECIFIC PERSONALITY: Here is an example. Amelia HATES her stroller. She never wants to sit in it. We use this to our advantage. If she wants to walk, she has to wear her mask. If she doesn’t want to wear her mask, she has to sit in the stroller. Amelia is a rockstar with her mask and working specifically to her personality has worked best for us.

My final piece of advice is be patient. There are grown adults who struggle with masks, so don’t expect your child to be perfect right out the gate. Even though Amelia is fantastic with her mask, we are definitely still working with Grayson. Like Cinderella said, have courage and be kind. Take it one day at a time and start slow. My kids have gotten better each time they have worn the mask. We are slowly working our way up to longer amounts of time. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to message me!

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