Starting to collect stuff for trip - where can I find stuff

[mom2nickntink]

I want to get DS (and DD - even tho she won't know - she's only 15 mo) an autograph book and pen. What is a "fat pen" and where do I get it? Where can I get this stuff - other than paying thru the nose at WDW?

Can I get a regular autograph book and sharpie marker?

Are there any other "must-haves" for a child's first trip to WDW? I want to make it as memorable as possible as this is his first trip and probably won't go back again till DD is older.

Thanks for all the help!!

 

[Barb D]

The autograph books at WDW are really NOT expensive. They're one of the few true bargains you can get there. They're only $5 or $6. You probably won't be able to find one cheaper before you go, and the ones there have cool WDW designs on them.

Sharpie pens are fine.

Oh, the other true bargain is the personalized Mickey ears. They're only about $5, too. They're very sturdy. My kids got them when they were 4 and 6. They're 9 and 11 now, and they still have those ears. You can get them with a chin strap for little ones. (We got our at the Geiger Counter kiosk in Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom. Not all of the shops have the ones with chin straps.)

 

[bobcat]

We made our own autograph books this past trip and it was really inexpensive. I bought a small spiral notebook with blank pages and we added stickers and clip art to each page for the characters. It was a big hit. The kids had a lot of fun making them as well. It cost maybe $2 to make as I had some stickers already and the notebook was $1. Fat pens are only $2.50 at the parks and can be found everywhere.

The hat shop on Main street at the MK will embroider your name on the mouse ears for free. This is a great deal.

I always have goodie bags I make up with party favors and small beenies I find on clearance.

 

[Ratpack]

I second the vote to make your own. We made one for DD and it was easy. We too got a sprial notebook about 4X6 with heavier paper for a few bucks. We then printed pictures of each character from the internet and pasted them on each page, thus each character had it's own page. We only did it on the front of the pages and left the back of each page for a photo of DD and the character that signed. The characters loved having their own individual page and tended to really personalize the autograph. For instance, Eeyore drew a rain cloud and rain over his picture. I would also recommend buying the Fat Pen when you get down there. They are only like $2 and they are ball point pens and not markers. Sharpies can tend to bleed through some papers and the Fat Pens are decorated in Disney theme.

 

[mom2nickntink]

We went on the net and printed out all these pics of the charachters and made them into stickers with this machine I have. DS got to do his all on his own and now he has a personalized book all ready for our trip.

Thanks for the advice about the fat pens, I'll definitely get them there instead of using the sharpie.

 

[tmfranlk]

I like to buy little Disney treats for my sister (6) before we go on a trip. I watch for clearance sales at the Disney store or any random place and buy from there. Last time I got the light up spinner at the Disney store. The $10 price tag there is probably about the same as the parks, but I had it ahead of time.

I will usually buy little cars, stickers, card games, a notebook, bean nag dolls or anything else that is cute and cheap. (I also found that these saved on the sourveniers she wanted). My best purchase was a electronic Disney Yahtzee game that I got on sale at KB. I'd take it in restaurants or lines with us and she'd play while we waited.

 

[paduncan]

Great idea about making your own books. Questions: Where did you find spiral book with heavier paper? Office Depot type store? And can anyone post the website that has the individual Disney characters for printing? Thanks

 

[mom2nickntink]

I found mine at my local $1 Store.

The site I copied my pics from was:
http://www.geocities.com/disneygettogether/

 

[bobcat]

I found mine at Big Lots, but have seen similar ones at Walmart.

 

[travelitis]

I make my own book, but it's more elaborate. I use a print program and print on card stock. It's a scrapbook with travel journal, autographs, and activities. I have title pages for each park, pages dedicated to character meals, a favorites page, etc. We had places designated for pictures with Mickey and Minnie and had characters sign by their pictures. I use clip art from many sites, especially www.disneyclipart.com. My books don't save money, but they are unique, and my kids love them. They will last longer than any other souvie they buy. They got extra attention, too. Mickey wouldn't stop until he saw every page. His helper was telling him he had other people to see, but he kept ignoring her.

I got really fat pens that have different colors of ink at the dollar store. This time I picked up character pens for $1 on clearance at the DS. I'm still hunting for something really fat and easy to hold for characters like Mickey.

 

[Ithastobe]

I ordered the Guest Of Honor badges for our kids. Cute, cute cute! I got the link from one of these posts. Can prob. do a search for GOH badges.

I also got two kiddy fanny packs, with water bottle for 3.99. Cost for water in the park is $2.00.
Here's the link to that one...

http://www.kbtoys.com/genProduct.html?PID=1055177&ctid=17&ls=default

Have fun!