It’s not news that devoted pet owners will do just about anything for their “fur children”, including luxury accommodations which are gaining popularity across the country. I have a friend who’s been putting her dog in a similar pet hotel for years, allowing her to watch her pets on a webcam while she’s away. After all, if you’re enjoying the place “Where Dreams Come True”, why not let your beloved pets experience some magic as well?

I was really impressed with the facilities at the Best Friends Pet Care, which opened this week. Situated across from Port Orleans Riverside on Bonnet Creek Parkway, the newly built Best Friends Pet Care replaces all other Disney kennels throughout the Walt Disney World Resort. With facilities for over 300 pets, this one new location will be able to comfortably accommodate all of Disney’s four-legged visitors. Whether you are just dropping your pet off for a day visit, or an overnight stay, they will be given as much attention as if they were a human guest at one of Disney’s deluxe resorts.

Here are some of the facts about the Best Friends Pet Care and its services:

• Boarding rate: Standard $37 / Resort Guest $34
• Daycare rate: 6 hours or less $16 / More than 6 hours $27

• Boarding rate: Standard $40 / Resort Guest $36
• Daycare rate: 6 hours or less $18 / More than 6 hours $30

• Boarding rate: Standard $59 / Resort Guest $53
• Daycare rate: 6 hours or less $30 / More than 6 hours $53

• Boarding rate: Standard $76 / Resort Guest $69
• Daycare rate: 6 hours or less $46 / More than 6 hours $69

A la carte offerings for cats include:

Purina food is provided for dogs and cats, or owners may bring their own. Owners may come throughout the day to enjoy the Play Park with their dogs or play with their other animals. Grooming prices and Pocket Pet boarding prices vary depending on the animal and services provided. Pricing and other details are available at wdw.bestfriendspetcare.com or by calling 877/4-WDW-PETS. Best Friends Pet Care resort is located across from Disney’s Port Orleans Resort-Riverside at 2510 Bonnet Creek Parkway in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., 32830.

Will you bring your pet to Best Friends Pet Care? I’d love to hear how they like it! More pictures of the Best Friends facilities may be found at my flickr page.

When first stumbling upon the Disney fan-site blog-o-sphere, one site stood out and instantly became a favorite. That would of course be the Disney Food Blog. I know I am not alone in loving this site and the wonderful person behind it, AJ Wolfe. It’s funny that since AJ has chosen to be for the most part completely anonymous on the internet, I actually spent the first 6 months or so I communicated with her, thinking she was a he! I actually think that’s a great testament to the power of her factual reporting and her blogging prowess. Of course, when I was lucky enough to meet AJ in person back in February, she couldn’t be a more stereotypically sweet and ladylike Southern lady! {Even though she’s technically a New Yorker, having only relocated to Texas a year ago – she’s just that charming!}

AJ was kind enough to let me post as a guest author on her site back when I was just getting started, and I appreciated that so much. Many of my blogging friends have contributed to her site as well, once again proving that there is no end to wonderful Disney food topics! I thought it’d be fun to get to know AJ a little better and discover some of the background behind her passions. So without further ado, here’s AJ –

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You know the old saying “write what you know” – well I can write about Disney till the cows come home, but there are some things I just know are better left to the experts. I thought it was time to bring in some of those experts and let them share their knowledge on subjects to which I might not otherwise do justice. In this case, I asked a wonderful twitter friend who goes by the handle KidaniKatie {aka Katie Siloac} to give our readers a rundown of DVC 101. I knew Katie was a DVC member (her username may have given that away) and I loved her site TheDVCLife.com so I thought it was a perfect place to start.

I know my family and I have wanted to become Disney Vacation Club members since its inception, way back when Old Key West was simply called Disney’s Vacation Club Resort and was the only option to buy into. It’s just not been in the cards for us to purchase, although we almost took the plunge a few years back when we did the tour and presentation when Kidani Village was being built. We still hope to be members some day soon, especially with our family of five (six when my mom comes with us) it would make perfect sense. But – is it really right for us? Is it right for you? What exactly do all the points and home resorts and…well, I should really just let Katie tell you. Please give her a warm welcome and just maybe she’ll come back and tell us other fun stuff about Disney!!

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Many of you found me on this site through twitter and shared in my journey to the Walt Disney World Moms Panel last year. During that process, I shared quite a bit about my Disney background and experiences. I am and always have been confident in my knowledge of Disney history and even a bit of trivia, and my desire to share that history is really what gave me the push to write about Disney here. That said – I am the FIRST to admit that I do not know it all. More than that, there are some areas of Disney fandom that I am just completely clueless about! Luckily, one of the side-effects of Disney obsession is an incessant desire to LEARN MORE about the parks, resorts, attractions, history, behind-the-scenes info – any and everything!

Being a Florida resident for the better part of the last 15 years and a cast member a few times, my knowledge was gained just by going to the parks and experiencing all the changes and history – as it happened. I realized during the Moms Panel application process that there is a whole other world of Disney fans out there who have completely different skill sets regarding our favorite place.

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After my first entry in my in preparation for the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration about visiting Walt Disney World solo with kids, I thought it’d be fun to highlight my personal top 5 experiences for first timers. Since there are 4 theme parks at Walt Disney World, I could be here all day giving you a top 5 for all of them, so this list will just cover The Magic Kingdom park.

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As a Florida resident living within an hour of the magic, I will admit to taking a day trip or two with the kids while my husband was at work, just because we could. Some of my favorite memories are of the times I was able to say “Guess what? We’re going to Magic Kingdom today!”. I’ll also admit that once we were about to walk through the gates, I was a bit worried about whether I’d actually be able to pull it off by myself or not. With the upcoming Disney Social Media Moms Celebration in February, where bloggers AND their families are invited for an incredible 3 days of social media conferences, entertainment, and dining as only Disney can provide, I thought I’d share some tips and ideas for the non-blogging parents that might want to venture out in the parks with the kids.

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You may have noticed I have not been blogging much lately. Part of it is because I’ve just been in this sort of limbo of anxious anticipation which is causing me to have nothing to say! I know, shocking – enjoy it while you can! I’ve almost felt guilty about my leaving on Friday to attend what I imagine might rank up there with marriage and childbirth as far as life-changing memories go – Disney Moms Panel Training. Then today, less than 24 hours away from when I’ll arrive, he received a call this morning that he has a job once again! Thank you ALL for your support and prayers during this difficult last month. The guilt is now transforming to excitement again and I thought I’d write a little list of what I’m anticipating the most during the next 5 days.

Of course, this is all just speculation about ‘hoped for’ activities – we will not get our itinerary until we check in tomorrow. There are trip reports and blog entries accounting for past year’s training events, but I have successfully avoided reading any of them – on purpose. I didn’t want to have any expectations going in and risk disappointment by thinking ‘hey, they did that last year!’. That is not to say I’m expecting to be disappointed – of course not! Anyway, I just thought I’d note a few things I’m hoping we get to experience.

• Riding Expedition Everest – even thought we live an hour away and have annual passes, I still have not gone on this ride! I’m not a roller coaster enthusiast, but I’ve done all the other coasters at Disney, so I’m sure I can handle this one, and it looks so scenic and exciting too!

• Seeing inside the new Bay Lake Tower at Disney’s Contemporary Resort. I’ve seen tons of pictures of this newest DVC offering, but it’s one of the few resorts I have not been able to tour yet. I’d love to see it in person!

• Heading back into the Tunnel (ok, the Utilidor) under the Magic Kingdom. I have no clue if there would ever be a need for the Disney Moms Panel to tour the Utilidor, but I have to admit, I kind of miss it and would love to see my old stomping grounds again.

• Checking out Pirates League or Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. Ok, so this is probably a long-shot because I doubt they are going to take the time to make-over all of us as pirates or princesses, but I think it would be SO cool to do!! I’ll probably do this with my daughter when we make it back for our girl’s day out trip at some point soon.

• Touring the Cinderella Suite in the Castle. Again, longshot maybe because this suite and staying in it are no longer part of the current Disney World promotion to visit the parks…and there are way too many of us to stay overnight IN the suite, so I’m not even asking for that, but just to be able to walk inside – see the twinkling lights in the ceiling over the bathtub…sigh…every princess’ dream!

No matter what we see or do (or eat) I have no doubt it will be an amazing trip of a lifetime. I have not been without family on a trip since my junior year trip to Europe in high school – and even then, I had my best friend with me – this time it’s ALL new people! Luckily I feel like I know many of them already and I know we’ll be into trouble in no time. I have never been away from my kids – they’ve had sleepovers but that’s it, and the baby, well…I really hope he remembers who I am when I return!! I will miss my husband and kids so much but I know they are wishing me well and so excited for this new adventure. I can’t wait to tell you all about it when I get back!

When last we left, the first Disney Villains float had just turned the corner on Main Street in the Magic Kingdom. Well continue if you dare, foolish mortals – to see the rest of Disney’s Boo to You Parade complete with Villains, ghosts and gravediggers! As always, click to enlarge the photos, and enjoy!

Pain and Panic from Hercules on the back of the first Villains float

Villains storm Main Street-Can you name them all?

Click to continue with the parade of photos…

My family visited Magic Kingdom on September 25, 2009 for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and shared the night with some very special guests – Disney’s Moms Panel! Almost all of the moms (and dads) were able to reunite that weekend and had a great view from the Main Street Train Station for the Boo to You parade. I thought I’d share some photos from one of the best parades at Walt Disney World. Since there is so much action in this parade, I decided to split it up into two posts. This first entry features all the classic Disney characters, and the next post will feature the Disney Villains and the Haunted Mansion residents. Click the photos to enlarge – and enjoy!

Magic Kingdom's entrance in Halloweenie splendor!

Fog rises from the Magic Kingdom as spirits gather for Halloween!

The Disney Moms Panel gathered for the show

I was unable to get a good picture of the Headless Horseman this parade, but you can watch my video from 2007 to experience it!

Boo to You!

See more of the parade…

This year, Disney Parks asked, “What will you celebrate?” and offered up free admission on your birthday as one answer to that question. Many have been wondering what next years marketing campaign would bring about. Disney announced today that celebration is still important, but this time it’s celebrating the gift of volunteerism.

Disney Parks have been giving back for years in many amazing ways, with their VoluntEars program being one of the most well known. Now hoping to incite some of that same spirit of giving among Disney guests, they have rolled out the Give a Day, Get a Disney Day program for 2010.

As announced yesterday, Disney now has an official blog, which contains more details on the promotion. To make this even more fun for participants, Disney has brought the Muppets in for this campaign. Muppet humor abounds on their “Cheers for Volunteers” Tour site. The tour will be traveling across the US, Puerto Rico and Canada teaming up with local organizations for even more volunteer opportunities. The site has several fun features such as desktop wallpaper, games and site flair, including the two images you see in this entry. You can also follow the fun on twitter with @DisneyParksTour.

Beginning January 1, 2010, guests can register for a day of volunteer service with participating organizations and reap the benefits of giving back and a thank you from Disney in the form of free park admission. If guests do not wish to use their free admission, they may donate it to a Disney-chosen charity, receive a special FastPass for certain rides for up to 5 guests in their party (there is limited availability for these based on first come-first served), or choose a collectible Ear Hat figuring with trading pins.

Mouse ears off to Disney for initiating such a wonderful program. In this day of ‘what’s in it for me’ getting back to grass-roots volunteerism will have endless benefits. Disney has just sweetened the deal by rewarding your efforts. Let’s all hope the desire for families and individuals to help others extends far beyond a one day event, and builds lifelong traditions.