Tag Archives: Disney Podcasts

While I’m at Walt Disney World

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Living a Disney LifeIt’s a poor practice to go away and leave things unattended.  There’s risk – it’s not safe.  I care enough about this little Living a Disney Life blog to try to look out for it.  I wouldn’t dream of leaving without making sure the place will be taken care of – Plus, I really care about you guys and I wouldn’t want you to go away empty handed should you happen to stop by while I’m out – you are a great bunch of people – you deserve top shelf reading material!

Keeping all that in mind as The Fam and I pack our bags, fasten on our Magic Bands, and mosey on down to Walt Disney World, I want you to know I’ve invited some friends over to take care of the place while we’re gone – and these are some pretty special friends, too!  While I’m off enjoying a Dole Whip and some churros, riding Expedition Everest and Rock’n’ Roller Coaster, feasting on dinners at Flying Fish and Tutto Italia – I will be leaving your Disney-blog-reading enjoyment in the very capable hands of the following Disney experts:Nick and Barbie - Disney Musings

Nick from Disney Musings – Nick and his wife, Barbie are (like most of us) huge fans of all things Disney.  On the Disney Musings blog, Nick, Barbie, and a variety of guests share their Disney travel experiences, tips, reviews and magical memories.  Some of my favorite Disney Musings’ posts are ones where Nick and Barbie let us into their home for glimpses of their amazing collection of Disneyana.  And if it weren’t for Nick, I never would have found Beers and Ears!  Nick is also a contributing writer for Tips from the Disney Diva and Devos.

Heather from Disney for Five+ – One of the things I like most about Heather is that she’s nearly as old as I am and tends to really understand me and all my Disney-ness.  Heather’s blog focuses on tips for taking Disney vacations with large families.  She knows all the best places to stay, eat, and play at Walt Disney World – she posts not only helpful hints and reviews, but also tells great stories.  Speaking of which, Heather also writes books!  You can check out her Amazon author page here.

Rebecca from Disney with Me – Rebecca’s got a sense of humor that just won’t quit and is one of the hardest working people I know.  Like me, Rebecca loves Disney podcasts and is a fellow Muppet fan.  Blog posts on Disney With Me range from podcast reviews to Disney travel advice, reviews of other Disney blogs and more.  Rebecca’s a Disney travel specialist and would be happy (overjoyed, even) to help you plan your next Disney getaway – (see: Fairytale Journeys by Rebecca Kelly on Facebook).

Curtis and Lindsay - Geekin' on WDWCurtis from Geekin’ on WDW – Curt and his Daughter, Lindsay, may be the new kids on the Disney Podcast block, but they are seasoned Disney travelers (and DVC members) who love Walt Disney World vacations.  The Geekin’ on WDW Podcast strives to give listeners a way to keep the Disney magic alive between vacations.  Curt and Lindsay share their family’s vacation stories, favorite rides and attractions, most loved restaurants and characters – all wrapped up in charming father/daughter conversations.

See?  I wasn’t kidding, was I.  Besides you, I’ve made some fantastic friends in the Disney community and am over-the-moon excited to have them as guests here while I’m gone.  I’m just sorry I’m going to miss all the fun.  Oh, wait!  I’ll be having a pretty good time myself, won’t I – what’s more fun than a trip to Walt Disney World?  Talk to you when I get back!

 

Add a Little Disney to Your Day

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Disney Mug CollectionIf you’ve accidentally stumbled upon this website and you don’t happen to be a True Blue Disney Fan, just click the back button now…you won’t understand this post.  You just won’t get it.  Unless you love Disney in a nearly irrational way, unless you pine for a Disney park from the time you leave – and count the days – until the time you return, the details that follow may seem foreign, obsessive, strange or silly even.  So…not a huge Disney fan?  Again, this post is not for you…just go.

Still here?  I’m talking to you now.  My dear Disney-loving brothers and sisters, YOU!   You understand me.  You sympathize with the main plight of my existence – I adore all things Disney and there’s no vacation in the world as good as a Disney one.  Surrounding ourselves with reminders of our happiest Disney days is essential – it’s what keeps us going day to day, right?  You understand, don’t you?

I’ve put together a list of some of the things I do to add a little Disney to my day.  What I want to know is this:  How many items on my list are also part of your daily Disney life and…what’s on your list that isn’t on mine?  Here we go:IMG_2115

1.  Start the day with coffee (sometimes tea or cocoa) – in a Disney mug!

2. Listen to the two P’s of Disney – Podcasts and Playlists.  My daily commute is about 35-40 minutes each way.  Plenty of time to enjoy a couple of podcast episodes or belt out a few Disney show tunes as I’m cruising down the highway.

3. Adorn the car with a Disney antenna topper.  I have a collection and like to rotate them out depending on the season.  Spotting my car in a parking lot always makes me smile.

Nemo Antenna Topper4. Disney casual wear.  I work in an office where business attire is required, but on the weekends, you’ll find me in my “Peace, Love, Mickey” shirt or my Avengers tee.  I’ll probably be sporting a Disney cap as well.

5. Disney accessories – Tinkerbell watch, Disney pin, Magic Band – all appropriate accessories for work or play!

6. Watch – Disney movies, TV shows, documentaries, YouTube videos of attractions – doesn’t matter to me – they all make me happy.  I’m seriously addicted to ABC’s Once Upon a Time.  Don’t judge.

7. Connect – Disney Twitter friends, Disney Facebook pages, Disney discussion boards/forums, Pinterest, Instagram – thousands of other Disney geeks just like me!  Nice folks, too.

8. Cook – I love trying out recipes from my favorite Disney restaurants.  Nothing like delicious 'Ohana Cheesy Potatoes in Process 1smells and tastes to trigger great dining memories and recreate the magic at home.

9. Read – Disney books, articles, blog posts, attraction and restaurant reviews, park news, touring strategies, you name it.

10. Talk Disney! – I’m lucky enough to have a spouse and offspring who love Disney as much as I do.  Conversations around plans for our next trip(s) and what Disney movie will next open in theaters is a daily occurrence.  (I’m also fortunate to have some Disney addicted friends and coworkers.)

Disney Dog Henry Jones, JuniorBonus – I love our Disney dog, Henry Jones, Junior.  Junior’s the best, most patient, tolerant member of the family who will never visit a Disney park, but embraces his family’s love of Disney just the same.

Now it’s your turn…how do you add a little Disney to your day?

 

The Dis Life Podcast with David Hodges

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The Dis Life & GoofyAs I’ve mentioned many times before, I’m addicted to and crazy about Disney podcasts.  They’re popular with Disney fans because they serve a number of purposes – they’re entertaining, they keep the Disney magic alive between vacations, they keep people informed about Disney news, and, personally, they help me feel better about my Disney obsession…there are a LOT of Disney-loving folks out there just like me and a bunch of ’em host podcasts.

Disney podcasts come in lots of forms and even focus on sub-topics.  I’m partial to ones that focus mostly on Walt Disney World and have a couple of hosts that interact well with each other.  One of the newest shows in my weekly podcast listening lineup is The Dis Life Podcast. 

The Dis Life is hosted by David Hodges and most of the time, his daughter, Dannielle.  Dave The Dis Life Podcast Hostsalso has guests from time to time and  his low-key style of Disney-speak makes for a good listen.  I discovered The Dis Life when I wrote my first post about podcasts and a reader suggested I listen to this great new father/daughter podcast team.  I took that advice and have been a loyal listener ever since.

A while back, Dave was kind enough to answer a few interview questions so we could get to know a bit more about the man behind The Dis Life…

The Dis Life eat the kitchen sink before1.  What unexpected surprises (good and/or bad) has podcasting brought you? 

When my daughter and I started this we were doing it just for our own entertainment.  We hoped for an audience, but didn’t really believe that people would listen on a regular basis.  What we actually received was so much more in the way of friendships and real connections and many loyal listeners.  It was a very welcomed unexpected surprise.

2.  Who are the top three guests you’d be most thrilled to have on your show? 

If we’re dreaming big, I would say first off Walt Disney himself, but that may be a little too big. If I were to choose people who are still alive I would like to have on the show: 

A. Joe Rohde David Hodges of The Dis Life

B. The longest employed CM who still works in the parks, not an imagineer or office worker or head cheese, but a regular worker, like a custodial worker or someone like that

C. A cruise director from any of the 4 Disney ships 

3.  What’s your Disney lucky charm – or most favorite, treasured Disney item? 

My most treasured Disney item is actually the Walt Disney biography by Bob Thomas. I am David Hodges' Favorite Disney Treasurebeyond fascinated with the life of Walt Disney. I have a lot of Disney stuff from pins to coffee cups and snow globes, but if I could only keep one item it would be this book.

4.  The one thing you love most about Disney parks?

I have thought about this many times and I think I enjoy the detail in everything the most. I have been to Disneyland and WDW so many times in my life that I still enjoy the rides, but that is not why I go. I love exploring the new areas as well as finding things that have been there forever, but I just never saw them.

5.  Best advice about podcasting you’ve ever received?

The best advice I have received was to have fun with it and be personable and authentic. When you start thinking of it as a job, paid or unpaid, the fun ends and it becomes a chore. No one like chores.

We’ve only been doing this podcast for about 7 months and I have followed all that advice. It is continuing to be fun and I have made a lot of friends in the process. 

David Hodges6.  Best advice about vacationing at a Disney park you’ve ever received – and you think everyone should know?

Take a break! I was told this long ago and I have done it both ways with trying to go from rope drop to close and also by taking breaks. My vacations that I took a break each day were more enjoyable than the one’s that I didn’t. If you think you can do it all in one day, you are mistaken and you will miss half the magic.

I think this advice is more valuable than making budget or looking for the deals or finding shorter lines during parades and fireworks. I think it’s the key to truly enjoying your time in the parks.

7.  How did you first learn about Disney podcasts?  Was that your inspiration for starting one of your own?

I have been interested in podcasting for a long time. I didn’t really know a lot about Disney podcasts at first. I listened to a lot of self-help and business podcasts starting off. I also listened to a lot of how to podcast podcasts. 

I eventually decided that it was time to start my own podcast, but I had a few ideas on what I D Hodgeswanted to talk about. My first thought was to do a family podcast since I have a degree in psychology, I’m not a psychiatrist by any means, but I was going to talk about life and things that most people go through. More of a support podcast. That is still on my radar as well as a few other things. I eventually said I wanted to do something I was passionate about and also something I could do with my 16-year-old daughter (now 17). We spend a lot of time every year at WDW so it was a no-brainer to do a Disney podcast. This is when I started researching other Disney podcasts. This is also when I realized that there were a lot of them ranging from news to travel info to adults only. I was surprised to see how many Disney podcasts were rated “explicit”. Even though I was going to be presenting info that was already being talked about we were going to be the only father/daughter Disney podcast out there. At least I didn’t see any and still have not seen it. My thought was that people would like to hear about Disney from different age groups. I guess, to answer the question, my inspiration to start the podcast was my daughter and having an opportunity for us to do something different together.

The Dis Life Podcast is available on iTunes and Stitcher.

Follow David Hodges and The Dis Life:

Website: TheDisLife.com

Instagram: thedizlife

Twitter: @thedislife

 

100 Days of Living a Disney Life

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1MinDisneyDreamLiving a Disney Life.com has reached a small milestone today – The blog is 100 days old.  During that time, I have written about every Disney topic from Disney cruise ports, theme parks and restaurant reviews to DIY Disney Christmas ornaments, Disney vintage vinyl, Disney Pin trading, and Disney recipes to cook at home – I guess I’ve had a thing or two to say about my love for Disney!

Let’s take a sec to ponder how this happened.  It all began with a tweet I noticed on September 4th.  It was from @WDWDisneyDiva and it said, “So you think you know Disney?  Recruiting Disney Writers!”  I thought – “I know Disney” and followed the link to find out more.  I submitted an article for consideration called The Importance of Planning, But Not Too Much – I sent it in on a whim – because we are huge Disney fans at my house, because I thought writing that one article would be fun, because I like a challenge and trying new things, but mostly because my youngest child had just left home and I was finding out first hand that “empty nest syndrome”, something I used to make jokes about, was an actual thing.  Along with my article, I submitted a silly top ten list of reasons the selection committee at Tips From the Disney Divas & Devos should choose me as an article writer.  It was for fun, but guess what?  I got the job!

It was like setting a match to very dry tinder.

My brain kicked into overdrive.  I made lists of articles I could write and I became consumed IMG_2398with thoughts of Disney – how our family had always loved Disney and how huge a role Disney had played in our lives, how our happiest memories involve Disney vacations, how we have so many Disney collectibles, Disney books, Disney pins, Disney clothes.  I started waking up in the middle of the night thinking of more and more Disney things to talk about.  There was NO way I was going to get this under control submitting two articles a month – I needed to start my own Disney blog so I could get some sleep!

I did consider carefully what I’d be getting into.  You can’t embark on something like this then abandon ship – well, I guess you CAN, but that’s not my style.  I have pretty good sticking power and have never been afraid of commitment (I did say yes when Raymond proposed to me just 6 weeks after we met!).  For about the price of a new purse (that was my justification, anyway) I bought my own website URL for three years.  So, honestly, Kristin the Disney Diva and fellow Diva, Amy get the credit (or the blame, I suppose) for Living a Disney Life.com’s existence.

IMG_2100I knew absolutely nothing about blogging other than knowing I like to read a few.  Google was my classroom and I crammed as if studying for final exams – blog hosting sites, Word Press basics, themes, widgets, pages, links, SEO, categories, tags, spam blocking, how to set up a Facebook page for a website.  Exciting stuff!  I published my first Living a Disney Life post on October 26th and this is my 102nd post in 100 days!  I still have a LOT to learn but at least the raging firestorm of Disney thoughts has now been contained to manageable flames – with an occasional flare up.

It’s like discovering buried treasure in my own backyard!  I had a twitter account purely for the purpose of spying seeing what my children and their friends had to say…today I have over 500 followers.  The number of fans that make up the Disney Community is amazing and those that I’ve met through this experience have been kind and funny and, most of all, welcoming and supportive.  Living a Disney Life on Facebook  has over 250 “likes” and I’ve been building small audiences on Pinterest and Instagram as well.  I even have a Klout score and I know what it is!  One of the most exciting things to happen so far, though, involves my love of Disney Podcasts.

Early on, I confided in Raymond a secret wish I’d been keeping – maybe someday, after a while, if my blog became successful, maybe I might get lucky enough to be invited as a guest on one of the Disney podcasts I love so much.  I couldn’t believe when, after day 69’s post – Disney Podcasts – Are you a Podperson?  brought so much attention – My wish came true!  The fabulous, gracious Disney Dream Girls asked me to be a guest on their show to talk about my Disney New Year’s Resolutions.  I’m still amazed that this happened to me!  The episode aired on January 9th – if you haven’t had the chance, please give the Dream Girls a listen.

So today I just wanted to look back a mere three months and reflect on all the fantastic thingsMed Cruise 2013 Camera 003 that have happened during that time (with The Fam’s unwavering support – I love you!).  Tomorrow’s post will be back to normal with another random Disney topic from my Disney life.

Please accept my very heartfelt thanks for taking the time to visit and read this and other posts, thank you for following me on Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.  Thank you for liking the blog’s Facebook page and for every comment you’ve left me there and here.  Yes, I would probably still tweet, pin, and post even if you weren’t here – but you are what has made this experience unbelievably magical instead of ordinary and for that, I am sincerely grateful.