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WDW Moms Panel

Reunited…and It Feels So Good!

5 January 2011 by Suzannah Otis 2 Comments

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Moms Panel I just wanted to take a moment to mark another magical milestone in my life; being back on the Walt Disney World Moms Panel answering questions! I’m honored to have been asked back again this year and will be giving out magical advice at www.DisneyWorldMoms.com until April.

So much has happened in the span of two years, it’s hard to imagine that just a short time ago my dream was to join the amazing panelists on the Walt Disney World Moms Panel, and that dream actually came true. Since the site here took off at around the same time and my last year was filled with special events and opportunities, new friends and experiences, I felt like I needed to remember the dream that started it all. It’s still pretty amazing if you stop and think.

I’m so grateful for the chance to help guests out in an official capacity on an official Walt Disney World site, not to mention the wonderful cast members I’ve met, fellow panelists I’ve worked along side and friends I’ve made because of the panel. It’s such a special opportunity of a lifetime and I am so appreciative, every day, for that gift. I only hope that I can pass my excitement, love and knowledge of Walt Disney World on to the people I come in contact with and, well, make Walt proud too.

If you’d like to ask me a WDW vacation planning question directly, you can head over to my bio page at DisneyWorldMoms.com and click on the “ask Suzannah a question” link. 🙂 I’d be happy to help! While you’re there, check out all the new faces ready to lend a hand as well. I hope to be highlighting some of them here on the sight in the coming months!

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Filed Under: Family Memories, WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Disney Moms Panel, Disney Moms Panel 2011, Moms Panel, Walt Disney World Moms Panel, WDW Moms Panel

The Walt Disney World Moms Panel – One Year Later

11 November 2010 by Suzannah Otis 4 Comments

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Disney Mom Suzannah A little over a year ago, I was floating in a surreal dream of having actually achieved my dream of being selected for the Walt Disney World Moms Panel. It’s hard to imagine a time before my Moms Panel journey began…but I thought I’d try to reflect back on it after an action-packed year. Of course, my year has been doubly blessed because so much has happened as a result of the blog as well. I am grateful for all that this past year has brought, in terms of friendships, personal successes, lessons learned and dreams come true. The wonderful thing about dreams coming true…once they do, you get to move on to the next dream. And let me tell you, a girl can get used to dreaming big!

In putting together the video I’m about to share below, I remembered when I first started looking into DisneyWorldMoms.com and watching the official video Disney released announcing the 2009 panel. I recall watching the video and seeing the faces of the moms and dads on the panel and just thinking, “That will never be me. I can’t imagine.” (but at the same time secretly hoping) The people on the panel seemed like rock stars to me; people you admired from afar but could never be a part of their world. Despite that, I had a dream…and now not only am I one of the chosen few Walt Disney World Moms Panelists, I call each and every one of them friend.

[Read more…] about The Walt Disney World Moms Panel – One Year Later

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Filed Under: Family Memories, WDW Moms Panel

Inside the VIP Lounge at The Living Seas

2 November 2010 by Suzannah Otis 6 Comments

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Last month, most of the Walt Disney World Moms Panel joined together for an informal reunion, just because we love an excuse to get together and what better place to do that than the Walt Disney World Resort, right? Our Pink Princess was kind enough to have a luncheon put together for us by the allied partners responsible for the Innoventions attractions. We were lucky enough to be treated to that lunch inside the second story of the Seas pavilion, in the former VIP Lounge area from back when United Technologies sponsored The Living Seas.

Unfortunately, I did not have my real camera and my cell phone pics are not the best, but I wanted to share the inside with you just the same. Hopefully I’ll get another chance to visit. I know the D23 Sip and Stroll attendees were able to experience both this lounge and the one for Spaceship Earth, so who knows what future events may take place here.

living seas vip lounge
This sign as you enter was enough to make my visit worthwhile.

[Read more…] about Inside the VIP Lounge at The Living Seas

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Filed Under: Disney Attractions, Disney Past, Walt Disney World, WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Epcot, EPCOT Center, Epcot corporate lounges, Epcot lounges, Future World, Future World lounges, Future World VIP lounges, hidden lounges of Epcot, Living Seas lounge, lounges, retro EPCOT, Seas pavilion, The Living Seas, United Technologies lounge, VIP Lounge, VIP lounges of Epcot

What is the Training Trip for the Walt Disney World Moms Panel Like? We’ll Show You!

22 September 2010 by Suzannah Otis 26 Comments

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There has been a lot of buzz about the 2011 Walt Disney World Moms Panel applications, just as there was last year. Today, friend and fellow 2010 Moms Panelist Marc Lorenzo shared a video he compiled of our training trip last year. It brought back such wonderful memories of our time together at Walt Disney World, I got his permission to share it here with all of you as well. Each training trip is slightly different and focuses on whatever projects WDW has going on at the time that they’d like to promote, in addition to lots of bonding opportunities among the new panelists and some special surprises too – this is Disney after all! We all had some an amazing time just packed full of memories at every turn, thanks to Walt Disney World, Laura Spencer and her team! I hope you enjoy this glimpse into our training trip last year thanks to Marc:

I never did get around to finishing my reports for the trip, but you can read the first day of training, hopefully I’ll finish it up before December! You can catch the entire trip report from Kaylene J. at her blog FiveTimesBlessed.blogspot.com (see links to all of the days on the left of that page), Kathie F. at WhatNowKathie.com, and Amanda W. at her site, OhAmanda.com.

Have you applied to the 2011 panel? I’d love to hear from you if so!

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Filed Under: WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Disney Moms Panel, Disney Moms Panel training, Kathie Flood, Kaylene, Marc Lorenzo, Oh Amanda, videos, Walt Disney World Moms Panel, You Tube, youtube

Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panelist-Amanda P

31 August 2010 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

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After another short break in the Meet Your Moms Panel series here on ZannaLand we are jumping back in, with the 2011 Walt Disney World Moms Panel applications starting up soon (September 13!). Today we get to know another Amanda – Amanda P. from Texas to be exact. (Followers of the Panel may realize there are now 3 Amandas on board!) These informal interviews are meant to be a jumping off point from the bios that appear on the DisneyWorldMoms.com site where you can learn about every panelist’s background and experience with Walt Disney World, and see their personal videos as well. Once you check them out there, you can get to know the panelists a little better here!


Walt Disney World Moms Panel
The Walt Disney World Moms Panel {image ©Disney}

Amanda P. has a great sense of humor and her love of Disney and her family (she recently had a baby girl, joining her other two princes at home!) shine through. I hope you enjoy getting to know her a little better –

[Read more…] about Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panelist-Amanda P

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Filed Under: WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Amanda P, Disney Moms Panel, Meet Your Moms Panelists, Walt Disney World Moms Panel

Walt Disney World Moms Panel Search 2011

16 August 2010 by Suzannah Otis 39 Comments

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Walt Disney World Moms Panel It’s that time again! In less than a month – September 13th to be exact – the search will again begin for new members of the Walt Disney World Moms Panel. Those of you familiar with the blog may remember my journey last year, which I chronicled here (and on twitter) pretty much to the point of making everyone around me nauseous with my pixie-dusted self. My only defense is that I was, in fact, very excited and determined to succeed in my goal of being on the panel and the blog hadn’t really taken off yet at that point, so I had a bit of time on my hands in order to wax poetic on the Moms Panel. A LOT. I’m still not sure how I was picked from all the amazing applicants. I have never doubted my Disney vacation planning knowledge or passion, but in meeting other panelists, they all seem to have something incredible that sets them apart. So while I’m not sure what it was that set me apart, I am forever grateful for the opportunities I was given and the friends I have made as a result. This past year really has been life-changing and opened my eyes to so many wonderful things.

Now, onto the point of my post. So you say you want to be on the Walt Disney World Moms Panel, eh? Well I’m here to explain how it all works. Of course, the actual process of choosing the applicants is top secret and not something we panelists are involved in, but that doesn’t mean I can’t give you a little info on how things go down.

First, the misconceptions – Most people think you have to a) be a mom and b) have kids to be chosen for the panel. This is simply not true. While the panel has the moniker of “Moms” panel it really is not exclusive to moms at all. Each year up until last year, one dad was chosen with each new panel. Last year, six dads joined the team. While there has not been a panelist without children chosen yet, they are still welcome to apply. The questions we receive on the panel range from what time Fantasmic shows on a certain date, how to make a celebration at Walt Disney World special, recommending hotels or restaurants, to which attractions are the most enjoyable for certain guests. There are just as many questions that have nothing to do with being a parent per se, as there are questions about how to handle the parks with kids. Bottom line, Disney is looking for knowledge, passion, and the ability to convey those two things clearly as you help guests plan their vacations.  The official qualifications from last year include visiting the WDW resort within the last 12 months along with some other must-haves.

Well, why don’t I let the Pink Princess herself, Walt Disney World Moms Panel and Social Media Manager Laura Spencer share some tips for what they are looking for, in her own words:

  • The competition is VERY stiff. The Walt Disney World Moms Panel website is based on writing, so poor grammar and typos will probably get you eliminated almost immediately. Proofread your applications.
  • Things like calling the Magic Kingdom ‘Disney World’  or the monorail the ‘train’ to the parks are subtle hints to reviewers that let them know your knowledge level.
  • Just be you. It’s not possible to know everything about Disney Parks. Fine dining, Disney architecture and multicultural family travel were my areas of expertise when I applied for the panel, so that’s what I talked about.
  • If your friends and family cannot help themselves from calling YOU for their Disney trip planning advice, somehow show that passion on the application. You have to literally “jump” off of the page to be picked from applicants that seem to get better each year.
  • Do your friends and family recommend you to other people to help them plan their Disney Parks vacations? If you cannot answer ‘yes’ to that question, then perhaps the Walt Disney World Moms Panel isn’t for you.  Current and former panel members have such a high passion for all things Disney, that everyone in their inner and outer circle knows it. Panelists were usually known as the ‘go-to’ person in their communities for Disney trip planning advice before they ever made it onto the panel.

Great words of wisdom. The first year I applied, I tried to fit in as many things as I could to “prove” what I knew and why I “deserved” to be on the panel. I realized that coming from that frame of mind – “I know it all, I SHOULD be on this panel!” is not the way to go about it. I feel, personally, that you must show your true self in your words and show what you DO with all that knowledge you have. There are thousands of Disney experts out there, but do you want them to help plan your vacation? And do they want to help?

As far as the actual process – the Walt Disney World Moms Panel search page will switch over to a form for writing your essay questions, in 100 words or less, on the date applications begin. If you already have a log-in for WaltDisneyWorld.com, simply use that to log-in and begin writing your answers. If you do not, you’ll be able to register before you start. You will then answer three questions, which could be about you, your family, what makes you a great Disney vacation planner, or other topics to help those reading get to know you a little better.

That email you use to register will be where all future communications from the Moms Panel are sent. You will receive a confirmation email that your application has been received. If you do not receive this email, do not panic. It could be lost in your spam folder, or somewhere in space between Disney and your computer. As long as you received the confirmation page on the site where you applied, your application has been received. While Disney cannot guarantee replying to all the applicants that do not make the cut, in the past emails have been sent out thanking you for your time and efforts and inviting you to the Mickey Moms Club.

One word of warning – do not write your answers in a word processor and copy and paste them into the form. Coding and invisible characters can be pasted in, making your answers virtually impossible to read. The form does note this, but it can be easy to miss in the excitement. You want to make sure all your words come across clearly!

If you move on to the second round, there will be another set of three essay questions to answer, most likely looking for specific examples of how you’ve helped others plan successful Disney vacations. I know many people want to know the questions ahead of time to prepare answers and not have to worry about being under pressure to fit it all in, in 100 words or less, under pressure. My view on this is that it doesn’t help. You are then so focused on trying to find the ‘right’ thing to say, you lose yourself in the process and that will be evident to those reading your responses. Let the real you shine through, spontaneously.

The third round then turns to a phone interview. You’ll be asked a few more questions and if you make it to this point, you’ll probably think your replies were horrible when you get off the phone. Pretty much every single panelist I spoke to last year thought they failed the phone interview miserably (myself included!) and obviously, that was not the case! My advice here is to relax, be yourself and try to speak as if you are just talking to a friend about Disney. That’s easy to do right?

…

As I did last year, I will update this page with information when applications open and as each new round starts. I can’t wait to meet the 2011 panel!

Have you applied in the past? Will you again this year? I’d love to hear from you here and have you keep me posted on how the process goes for you. Wishing all of my friends who joined me on this path last year, as well as those reading this now, the best of luck this year. I hope you will get to receive the exciting message I was honored to be given last year. No matter what happens, be confident in your knowledge and passion for our favorite place – Walt Disney World. Pixie dust to all!

Update: From Laura Spencer at the Mickey Moms Club Illuminations Party, the 2011 Walt Disney World Moms Panel search will begin on September 13 and run for 5 days, until September 17. Best of luck!

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Filed Under: WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Disney Moms Panel, Disney Moms Panel 2011, Walt Disney World Moms Panel

Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panelist-Cathy S

15 July 2010 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

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This week on the Meet Your Moms Panel series here in ZannaLand we are meeting a wonderful mom that started on the panel in 2009 – Cathy S! These informal interviews are meant to be a jumping off point from the bios that appear on the DisneyWorldMoms.com site where you can learn about every panelist’s background and experience with Walt Disney World, and see their personal videos as well. Once you check them out there, you can get to know the panelists a little better here!


Walt Disney World Moms Panel
The Walt Disney World Moms Panel {image ©Disney}


The few times I’ve hung out with Cathy I’ve loved her sense of humor and personality. We’ve had a lot of fun on twitter too – she and Disney Dad Jonas are killer at 80’s movie quotes! I hope you enjoy getting to know her a little better –

[Read more…] about Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panelist-Cathy S

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Filed Under: WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Cathy S, Disney Moms Panel, interviews, Meet Your Moms Panelists, Walt Disney World Moms Panel

Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panel – Maria M!

7 July 2010 by Suzannah Otis 3 Comments

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After a short break, the Meet Your Moms Panel series here on ZannaLand is back! Today we are meeting my fellow Floridian Mom – Maria M! These informal interviews are meant to be a jumping off point from the bios that appear on the DisneyWorldMoms.com site where you can learn about every panelist’s background and experience with Walt Disney World, and see their personal videos as well. Once you check them out there, you can get to know the panelists a little better here!


Walt Disney World Moms Panel
The Walt Disney World Moms Panel {image ©Disney}


I was lucky enough to spend some time with Maria during training. I think we are similar in that we are both on the shy side, but fun-loving once we get comfortable. Maria is so incredibly sweet and her love for her absolutely adorable family shines through. I am proud to call her a friend and hope you enjoy getting to know her a little better!

[Read more…] about Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panel – Maria M!

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Filed Under: WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Disney Moms Panel, Maria M, Meet Your Moms Panelists, Walt Disney World Moms Panel

Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panel – Dad Chris G

19 May 2010 by Suzannah Otis 2 Comments

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We are now at week 11 of our Meet Your Moms Panel series here on ZannaLand and get to meet another dad – this time our first new dad from the 2010 panel, Chris G. These informal interviews are meant to be a jumping off point from the bios that appear on the DisneyWorldMoms.com site where you can learn about every panelist’s background and experience with Walt Disney World, and see their personal videos as well. Once you check them out there, you can get to know the panelists a little better here!


Walt Disney World Moms Panel
The Walt Disney World Moms Panel {image ©Disney}


If the 2010 Moms Panel training trip were to have an official mascot of sorts, it would be Chris. I don’t mean that in a ‘he’d look great in a chicken-suit’ kind of way. Rather, he is someone I’d nominate for class president if we had such a thing. He was actually the first person I met at our reception when we were all nervous and excited to meet one another. He came right over and introduced himself (and to my surprise knew who I was) and was just such a wonderful, positive, exuberant  presence in the room. This presence continued throughout training. He had not a bad word to say about a single person and was such a great storyteller we were all captivated by his words. His love of Disney AND his family was ever-present throughout training. It was easy to see why he was chosen to help others in a Disney capacity, since he is a teacher by profession and helps guide children on a daily basis. I was left with the knowledge that his students are very lucky indeed, as am I to know him! Please meet Chris —


[Read more…] about Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panel – Dad Chris G

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Filed Under: WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Chris G, Disney Moms Panel, interviews, Meet Your Moms Panelists, Walt Disney World Moms Panel

Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panel – Margaret Fries

12 May 2010 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

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Ten weeks into our Meet Your Moms Panel series here on ZannaLand and we finally get to meet Margaret F, better known to some as MEFRIES! These informal interviews are meant to be a jumping off point from the bios that appear on the DisneyWorldMoms.com site where you can learn about every panelist’s background and experience with Walt Disney World, and see their personal videos as well. Once you check them out there, you can get to know the panelists a little better here!


Walt Disney World Moms Panel
The Walt Disney World Moms Panel {image ©Disney}


When I first began posting on twitter and started this blog, one of the first Disney Moms I discovered on twitter was @mefries. I soon discovered that she was the life of the Moms Panel party. In fact, it was Margaret’s tweets about meeting up with her “Moms Panel BFF’s” and all the fun they had together that really made me more obsessed with becoming part of the panel. So there you have it, this is all Margaret’s fault. 😉 Now that I’ve met Margaret and spoken with her in person and on the phone, I can see why she is so beloved among Moms panelists and Disney fans alike. She is just SO fun and full of life, she has such a great sense of humor and love of Disney – it’s contagious. I’m so happy and honored to have Margaret here to share some more about herself with all of us —


[Read more…] about Meet Your Walt Disney World Moms Panel – Margaret Fries

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Filed Under: All blogs, WDW Moms Panel Tagged With: Disney Moms Panel, interviews, Margaret Fries, Meet Your Moms Panelists, mefries, Walt Disney World Moms Panel

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