Since we were traveling with my autistic son, I thought I’d compile a list of tips and links to websites that helped us plan our trip. This post is live over at Savvy Source - http://www.savvysource.com/parenting/13223-visiting-disney-world-with-a-special-needs-child

One of my best tips is to get an ID tag made. Almost every gift shop has a machine that will create these invaluable tags. I picked the one at the Star Tours ride since it was a family favorite (and we are a bit of a Star Wars Geeky family). For only $11 I made a luggage tag with my son’s name and information and my name and cell phone number. It cam with a leather strap that we then used to attach it to his belt loop. Made my heart rest at ease a bit knowing that if he got separated from us, there was a way to let people know how to get him back to us even with Brady being non-verbal.

Have you gone to Disney with your special needs child? Have any tips to share? I’d love to hear about them!

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disclosure: I got to tour the facility as part of the Disney Social Media Moms conference. I paid to attend this conference but was given huge discounts on things like our stay and park tickets. This was a trip of a lifetime and I appreciate all the work that went into this conference.

The location is being finalized and we will be announcing that soon, but in the mean time, please help us out by filling out this survey if you are interested in learning more!

So I’m sure by now you’ve all seen this cover…

The article talks about attachment parenting and you can even fill out a questionnaire to gauge your parenting style. I tried to take it but it asked questions like “Is your child breastfed” and “Does your baby sleep in your bedroom?” and not the questions I wanted to answer like,

“While on a conference call with a national brand, did you do one of the following:

• clean a dirty diaper
• keep a toddler from eating out of the trash
• rescue a pet tortoise from a Jedi fight with a lego ObiWan
• fish your keys out of a singing potty
• all of the above

So basically, I stopped answering their questions.

This article was meant to be provocative, edgy, in your face! Instead it just ticked of the majority of people both for and against attachment parenting and started a twitter storm.

• Have one easy location with transportation to/from your hotel
• Get discounted park tickets to Disney World
• Have access to the best facilities in the area to train and play
• Get food delivered to the fields, healthy options even!
• Receive personalized treatment and stellar experiences incomparable to anything else in the kids sports world

After a tour of the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World in Florida? I realized all of the above is true with their facilities.

I was lucky enough to get to tour this with Molly Gold of Go Mom! Inc, Yoly Mason of  Cuponeando, and Mary Donnellan of MomSelect. Upon entering the park we were treated to a group picture in front of the park and then to a very VIP tour! My goal… to see some athletes! It was a goal met within 10 seconds of arriving as the facility was hosting the World Cheerleading Championships. Boy would my newly minted teenage boy be disappointed he wasn’t with me.

We got to zip around the complex in golf carts seeing the many, many, many baseball fields and the fields for various other sports like soccer, football, track & field and more! We even got to catch part of a baseball game during the Brave’s extended spring training. They were playing the Nationals and were all business. (I refrained from whooping and hollering and taking toooo many pictures of the young players hoping for a shot at the Majors.)

After we were done oogling watching them, we got to see how the productions offices worked. Molly was a natural at the controls. I’m pretty sure when her boys are done with baseball, she’ll have a long career in broadcasting!

There is so much that goes into just one sports telecast, from the stats, to the announcers, to the director calling out which camera should be on whom, it was dizzying! I certainly found a new appreciation for those in sportscasting!

Next we went to the Welcome Center. Holy Cow! Did you know about this place??!! It’s like a Team Mom’s dream! If you have a kid playing in a tournament there (or there for whatever reason) they are like your own personal concierge! They had signs you could write on to cheer on your team, they had an area to print photos that they took as a part of GameDay Photos, they had a way of getting t-shirts printed with your team name, nick name, kids numbers, whatever you wanted! They even will deliver food right to the field your kids are playing on!! I was in awe and wished I could bring them with me to Field Day for my kids tomorrow.

Here is a little more about the Welcome Center…

Welcome Center

Whether you need assistance with transportation, tickets, reservations, or just the inside scoop on how to maximize your time at the Walt Disney World® Resort, the Welcome Center team is here to help you make the most of your Disney experience. It’s a one-stop concierge experience for everything Disney!

• Tickets to Walt Disney World® Theme Parks, Water Parks and More
• DisneyQuest® Indoor Interactive Theme Park
• Walt Disney World® Golf Reservations
• Walt Disney World® Recreation
• La Nouba™ by Cirque du Soliel®
• Disney Dining Options and Reservations
• Miniature Golf
• Transportation
• Directions
• And Much More!

• Mom is happy, Kids get attention, Family is fed a healthy meal, House is a wreck.
• Mom is happy, Kids get attention if they are on facebook chat, Family is fed any meal (don’t get picky y’all. Pizza is a food group!), House is less of a wreck.
• Mom is happy, Kids get left to fend for themselves, Family is fed a semi-healthy meal, House is still sort of a wreck, but decent enough for a surprise visitor.
• Mom is not happy, Kids get attention, Family is fed a healthy meal, House is so clean you could eat off the floor.

Okay, or maybe those are the options in MY house.

Now… Wouldn’t you love to have someone clean your house for you?! To give you 3 hours of cleaning to make your house so clean it will look like you have no children at all? (Or at least look like the kids actually help with chores?!)

Yeah, me too!

The folks here in Colorado with Merry Maids have the answer for you! A contest open to those of you who live in Boulder and Larimer County… A contest so nice, you’ll beg your annoying friends who actually have spotless houses, to enter and gift it to you!

Entering is simple… Head on over to the facebook pages for the 2 locations and “like” then enter! Super easy!  The prize? On May 31, one lucky fan will win a 3-hour cleaning from Merry Maids of Boulder County and one lucky fan from Larimer County will win as well! (These are 2 separate contests. Please make sure you are entering the correct one for your county!)

Merry Maids of Larimer County Facebook Contest

Merry Maid of Boulder County Facebook Contest

Don’t forget to “like” them on facebook as well! www.facebook.com/merrymaidsboulder and www.facebook.com/merrymaidslarimer.

For full rules and eligibility, please see the above links to the contests.

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disclosure: this is not a sponsored post. I have received no monetary compensation for promoting these contests. I did, however, receive the ability to gift a cleaning to a friend who will declare me her “bestest friend in the whole wide world” (or something similar).

Want more Wordless Wednesday?  Check out:  The Bonafide Life, Better in Bulk, Shanamama, From Dates to Diapers, Not Your Momblog, The Divine Miss Mommy, Colorado Moms, Rajean Blomquist, Brain Foggles, Lil Kid Things, The Centsible Life, Rachel Ferruci, and Zensible Mama.

I had him start thinking of website names and went to Go Daddy as I usually do, to look up and purchase domains. While I was poking around their site I found out they take an active role in helping prevent cyber bullying.

Did you know Go Daddy works around the clock to keep children safe online? Cyberbullying and illegal online pharmacies are just a few of the issues Go Daddy works to combat. Driven by the belief that the Internet should be safe for everyone including children, Go Daddy has helped pass both the Ryan Haight Online Pharmacy Consumer Protection Act and the Protect Our Children Act of 2008.

This little known fact really helps ease my mind about T starting his own website. Now, naturally I’ll be watching him like a hawk and having all the emails come to me, comments need to be approved by me, the whole works. If he thought I was tough and overprotective before, he’s about to see just HOW over protective I’m going to get.

Does your child have a website? If so, how old are they? If not, do they want one?

There’s a lot you don’t know about Go Daddy! Including all the tools they have for bloggers! Check out www.godaddy.com to learn more!

Join the conversation for your chance to win 3 years Unlimited 4GH Hosting from Go Daddy! 

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Go Daddy. The opinions and text are all mine.

Powerful words when you think about it. This is something I’ve been striving to do for my husband and kids and something I’m ashamed to say I struggled with.

You see, I’m an independent gal. Any one member of my family or friends or even strangers on the street can see that. I want to do everything myself. I don’t need help. It’s easier just to do things on my own. So how do I switch my brain from that for the past 33 years to making sure when the boys and I are together, that we are truly together, not just occupying the same room, each doing things on our own?

It’s also no secret that Brady’s Autism is a struggle. I have countless posts here about our journey. How can I make sure that I’m giving equal attention to my other boys when it seems like my entire focus is on Brady?

Blogging has helped, in a way. Getting opportunities to go on trips like to the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration and combine it as a family vacation recently, really helped. We got to get away from the day to day, school and work, and really focus on doing things as a family. (Although next vacation I’d like to try to NOT have one to three kids in bed with me for 5 nights kicking and snoring all night.)

Now that we are back in reality, how can I keep this up? The togetherness, not the snoring. Here are a few ways I’m hoping to achieve “Making Together Better”

• Family Game Night. We used to do this but have really dropped off. I want to bring it back as a way all of us can laugh and spend time together.
• Family Movie Night. We do this, but often times I’m on the laptop or reading and not really watching. I think if I take a more active role in picking the movie and watching it with the boys, they might get into this again too.
• “Hug a Brother/kid” moments. Just stopping at some point in the day to declare everyone to give each other a hug and tell them something amazing about themselves. (I can see the eyerolls from my teenager already).
• Computers off by dinner time. For everyone, including me. This one will be painful, but I’ve been trying it out here and there already and so far my blog hasn’t blown up and my clients haven’t complained… so it’s time to make this permanent.

What tips do you have for Making Together Better? How will you incorporate this into your everyday life? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

This post was written in part as an entry to a contest sponsored by Brica. I’m headed to the Type A Conference in Charlotte, NC next month and they are looking to sponsor a blogger. Who am I to pass up an opportunity like that right?! Plus, I love their message, site and products so do me a huge favor and follow them on twitter and facebook pretty please.

Denver’s first deal for Mother’s Day? The Circus!

$39 for Carson & Barnes Circus Family Fun 4-Pack May 18-22 – an $85 Value

Ready for a fun family event where every seat is just steps from the action? See elephants, horses, ponies and dogs perform amazing tricks in the center ring! Be amazed and thrilled by the High-Wire Motorcycle and the Death-Defying Dual Wheel of Destiny! There’s even a free petting zoo along with elephant and camel rides (the Midway opens one hour before showtime).

The Carson & Barnes Circus is a 75-year-old tradition. Make your own family memories and have a fantastic day with this wonderful, exclusive offer from Plum District.

The Family Fun 4-Pack includes:

• 2 adult and 2 children’s tickets
• 2 elephant or camel rides
• $20 in Carson Cash to spend on midway rides, games, concessions & more

General Admission tickets may be upgraded at the Box Office to Reserved Seats for $3 more or Box Seats for $6 (additional charges are per seat). There are available dates at both locations:

Highlands Ranch:

• Friday May 18 at 4:30 and 7:30pm
• Saturday May 19 at 1:30, 4:30, and 7:30pm
• Sunday May 20 at 1:30 and 4:30pm

Castle Rock:

• Tuesday May 22 at 4:30 and 7:30pm

CARSON & BARNES CIRCUS WEBSITE>

$39 for Carson & Barnes Circus Family Fun 4-Pack May 18-22 – an $85 Value

Also… For you Colorado Moms, or just moms who are looking for a getaway, Plum District has an amazing deal in Vail!

Just $399! Two-Night Spa & Ski Colorado Getaway at Vail Valley’s Stunning Lodge & Spa at Cordillera – a $658 Value

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disclosure: Affiliate links included.