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Matchy-Matchy! Is it tacky? ABSOLUTELY! But matching or coordinating outfits can add some fun and extra MAGIC to your Disney Vacation and do wonders for your scrapbooking layouts. Matchy-Matchy either brings a huge smile to your face and makes you giggle or it makes you roll your eyes. If it makes you roll your eyes and you are planning on reading this entry, then you should be prepared for a little eye strain ;). Whether you are on a Disney cruise or in a Disney park, there is no better place to do the Matchy-Matchy thing. Before you make up your mind that friends and families that match or do coordinating outfits on vacation belong on the akward family photo site, take a minute to check out this entry.

Why Match?

There are a couple of reasons to match or coordinate clothes on a Disney Vacation. The most practical reason is to be able to spot each other in the parks or on a cruise. Check out Jan’s (Quiltymom’s) matching tye dye tees.

Jan said, “It’s an amazing way to find everyone in a crowd! At first DH wasn’t sold on the idea (“I have enough clothes!”), but when he couldn’t reach me by phone in DCA one day, he started looking for my shirt. Found me, too!”

CynthiaY2 (Cynthia) matches her family by coordinating with a particular color for a particular day! Cynthia sites SAFETY as a reason for coordinating colors in the park. Here is a short story that where she give us an example of choosing your colors carefully.

Safety!! In crowds as large as Disney World/Disneyland it’s easy to get seperated especially from the younger ones very quickly. If I lose sight I can always make a quick glance around and know exactly what they are wearing…the same color combination as all of us! It happened just a couple of weeks ago. It was St. Patricks Day so of course we all wore green. Well unforunatley so did everybody else 🙂 We were heading out of Magic Kingdom and we got to the circle we went left and my son went right following another “MOM” in green. We got to the curb and I noticed I couldn’t see him!!! I was in a panic as EVERYONE was in GREEN!! I told my husband and daughter to stand fast and I went to the other side of the circle. It only took a moment and my iphone rang and it was my son at City Hall in tears calling me. I stayed on the phone with him until I saw him for myself. He said “Mom I followed the green shirt!” He was so upset BUT he did exactly what I told him to do find a cast member and call ME!! So on normal days it works perfectly.

I chose these layouts from her gallery because it a great example of not only coordinating outfits by color but coordinating the color with the park you are visiting.

Cynthia’s second reason for coordinating colors:

It’s all about the PICTURES!!

It’s all about the pictures for me and capturing those magical memories. I’m a planner…probably a bit over planning BUT it makes my vacation stress free because I have no worries about what to wear each day and I know my photos will turn out FABULOUS!

It is all about the pictures for me too! As a scrapbooker, I have this ridculous need to have everything coordinate. My children have to not only endure matching at Disney but they have to match on special occasions too! We started the Matchy-Matchy thing on our honeymoon in 1999 by packing matching non-Disney t-shirts. We were newlyweds and it seemed like fun to match. In 2002, I bought the same Disney t-shirt from the Disney Store in 5 different colors and the same style shorts in 4 different colors for DH, DD, and me. We also purchased custom made t-shirts that had our family name and the dates of our vacation. We did the same for the next few years including whatever island shirt was being offered that year in the Disney Store. This method was cost effective until we had Twins and now outfitting the family from the Disney Store was cost prohibitive. In 2007, I discovered how to make my own t-shirts with iron on transfers. I became a crazy woman and designed a bunch of t-shirts and made them for each member of the family. One of my friends discovered pillowcase dresses and made inexpensive matching outfits with Disney Princess material and animal print material. In 2010 we found the most cost effective way to coordinate 4 girls. We purchased Disney t-shirts and coordinating shorts at Target and Wal-Mart at the end of the summer season. We were able to buy t-shirts with Dumbo, Marie, Bambi, Tinker Bell, Cinderella, two Minnie t-shirts and five pairs coordinating shorts for 4 girls (48 pieces) for under $100.

Here are a few layouts from my MouseScrappers Gallery.

Matching t-shirts and shorts from the Disney Store

Custom made t-shirts from the Disney Store

Pillowcase Dresses/Tops and Homemade t-shirts

Matching Disney Island Shirts, Iron-ons and Homemade t-shirts

Princess Coordination

T-shirts and coordinating bottoms purchased at the end of the summer season from Target and Wal-Mart

Thanks to the CT team for all the feedback. All of the layouts featured are in the MouseScrappers Gallery and you can find the credits there. You can check out this thread for more ideas:
http://www.mousescrappers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=105221#post105221

I hope you enjoyed all the Matchy-Matchy!

To close, I will use more of Cynthia’s words because sums it up well:
“What other time in your life will you take the time to take pictures in front of such amazing backdrops! Take advantage of it!!

There are few things as exciting as seeing the magic of Disney through the eyes of children but by the same token traveling with kids can be a daunting task and that brings me to today’s post.  I hope you will find the following tips helpful in not only making the actual travel to your destination less stressful but also allow you to relax and enjoy your vacation more once you arrive.

Today I will focus on the three “p’s”—planning, preparation, and precaution (don’t let that last one scare you I will explain more shortly).

Planning: The more you can plan ahead of time, the less you have to think about (or let’s face it, worry about) while on vacation.  This extends beyond ADR’s for dining and what park we will visit each day.  This can include deciding on each day’s wardrobe (stay tuned for some great blog entries on this topic in the near future) before you leave home and packing accordingly.  This makes things run smoothly in the mornings when you are trying to get everyone up and out to the parks while also eliminating the “Mom, does this shirt go with this?” or “Mom what color socks do I need to wear”, “Mom I can’t find my brown shorts”, etc. while you too are trying to get ready for the day.  For my kids, I pack each day’s outfit (including undies, socks, and any applicable accessories—bows, barrettes, hats) in a gallons size Ziploc bag labeled with their name and the day I want them to wear it.  Then each morning the only thing I have to do is hand each child a bag and they have everything they need to dress for the day.  This same idea works well for the daily supplies needed when traveling with an infant.  Prepare a Ziploc back with the food, formula, disposable bibs, utensils, diapers and so on needed for each day so all you have to do is grab and go each morning.

Preparation and Precaution: These do go hand in hand in my mind because one of the keys to avoiding unnecessary vacation stress when traveling with kids is being prepared for what you know will happen (based on your everyday experiences) while also anticipating and being prepared for what might happen.  From our everyday lives we know that kids get restless when confined to the same place for an extended period of time which means traveling to the happiest place on earth can be a recipe for disaster if you are not properly prepared.  I am always on the lookout for new (and cheap) things to entertain my kids when traveling.  (I will get into more specifics in a future blog post.)  I have had great luck with the dollar bin at Target as well as the local dollar store but the one thing I have learned is that you can’t go looking for anything in particular because the selection is always changing.  For that reason, I look every time I am in one of those places even if I don’t have a trip coming up—this way I am always adding to my stash of goodies.  I have a reusable (Disney of course) shopping bag that I use to store everything and it stays hidden in a guest closet.  Keeping these items a secret is another key to maximizing their entertainment value.  As we all know, the most play time the great majority of toys get is when they are brand new so waiting until you are on your way to reveal them gives you a great advantage.  And don’t bring out everything you have at once either. Instead offer one new item at a time and perhaps reserving some for use when waiting for a show or a parade (or any other time when arriving early to stake out seats is necessary).

In terms or precaution, I always go by the motto my Mom instilled in me—“better to have it and not need it, then to need it and not have it.”  Don’t get me wrong, I am not suggesting you load yourself down like a pack mule “just in case” but there are a few key things that have not been needed on every trip came in very handy on the times when they were.  First is a mini first aid kit and some basic medications.  I found a great first aid kit in the travel size section at Wal-Mart for less than $3 and it has become a permanent fixture in my park bag.  You never know when you might need a band-aid and while you can get one from Disney first aid, having some with you allows to quickly take care of the “boo-boo” and get back to having fun!  The same goes for a few key medications I carry:

• Tylenol or Ibuprofen for both adults and chewables for kids
• Chewable Pepto for both adults and kids: Let’s face it there is no shortage of yummy food at Disney and you never know when enjoying all of the delicious options might result in an upset tummy.  This way you can address the situation right away and hopefully get relief quickly.
• Allergy medication: Here I am referring to generic seasonal allergy medicine.  There is nothing that can ruin a vacation faster than getting somewhere and having whatever is in bloom wreak havoc on your sinuses—leaving you miserable and unable to breathe.  Again, I know you can purchase medication on property (at a premium of course) but I prefer saving the extra money and having it readily available should anyone need it.

So I leave you with one final thought, the more planning and preparation you can do beforehand, the less you have think about while on vacation making it easier to focus your energies on making memories with your family!