2017 Disney Social Media Moms Celebration Land & Sea: Day 1

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I was invited by Disney to attend the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration (yay!). I paid a conference fee and received complimentary goodies but all opinions are entirely my own. 

I’d always wanted to know what went on at the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration. This year I actually got the chance to find out for myself. I already knew it was going to be an amazing experience but it completely surpassed all my expectations. Find out what #DisneySMMC is all about and what happens once the celebration gets started!

I couldn't believe I'd actually been invited to the #DisneySMMC! Find out what the excitement is all about!

 

It started off like any other day. I got the kids off to school and settled in to check e-mail and get to work. Then I found this in my inbox:

Getting invited to the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration was a dream come true.

 I read it, reread it and then read it again for a third time. It finally started to sink in that I’d actually been invited to the 2017 Disney Social Media Moms Celebration. If you’re a blogger, this is THE coveted invite you dream about. I’d heard about it ever since I began blogging and though of course I hoped to be invited someday, I never dared to believe that Disney’s magical pixie dust could be sprinkled in my direction.

This year was even more special (if that’s even possible) since it was the #DisneySMMC Land And Sea. Not only would my family and I spend time at Disney World, we’d also be taking a cruise on the Disney Wonder. We’d always wanted to take a Disney Cruise but it just hadn’t been in the budget. While this trip wasn’t free, it was drastically cheaper than if we went on our own. My Disney loving family was going to be so excited!

Then reality set in. The February dates were too close to Valentine’s Day and my husband can’t take time off around any big holidays. That also meant the girls couldn’t come because I’d have nobody to watch them while I was at the “blogger only” events. My girls were pretty disappointed not to go to Disney World but were really upset about missing the cruise. The good thing is that the promise of lots of souvenirs cheered them right up.

Luckily, my friend Kristie was more than happy to take a few days off from her mom duties for a fun girl’s trip. We started counting down the days and it seemed like forever before February 7th finally arrived!

Disney Social Media Moms Celebration Land & Sea: Day 1

Once we checked in to the Port Orleans: Riverside, the celebration kicked off with a personal shopper experience from Hanes. Does it get any better than starting your day with shopping and mimosas? They showed us  their latest bras, panties and my favorite, the cropped leggings! I even got to pick some out for myself and they gave us little travel care kits for the cruise. On top of all that, they were giving away a $500 Disney gift card to the blogger that looked most #HappyInHanes.

I'm Happy In Hanes at the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration

I tried my best (which wasn’t hard because I was already pretty happy) but someone else took the prize. It’s tough to compete against a group of bloggers…they’re a pretty creative bunch!

After that, we had the afternoon free so Kristie and I headed to Hollywood Studios for some Tower Of Terror action and ran into these guys along the way.

We ran into some stormtroopers at Hollywood Studios

That evening was the Social Media Attendee Reception. It was held in the building where the Festival Of The Lion King takes place but instead of lions and acrobatic monkeys, they filled it with food, wine and bloggers. It was fun meeting so many bloggers from around the country, many of whom I’d heard of before but never met in person.

The appetizers were amazing too! I tried to have a little self-control because dinner was just around the corner, but I couldn’t help but fill my plate!

The first night of the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration kicked off with a party at Animal Kingdom

We also learned more about the upcoming opening of Pandora – The World Of Avatar (May 27). This place is going to be amazing! My hubby teases me because he had to drag me to see Avatar and I ended up loving it even more than he did. I hate it when he’s right! Now I can’t wait to see the floating mountains in person and take a ride through a bioluminescent rainforest!

We learned more about the opening of Pandora - The World Of Avatar
Photo courtesy of WaltDisneyWorldNews.com

Next it was time for family and friends to join us for the Family Welcome Dinner. Sponsored by GoGoSqueez, it was an amazing event. We had Animal Kingdom all to ourselves to enjoy more food, music and dancing.

The Disney Social Media Moms Celebration took place at Animal Kingdom after the sun went down

We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful place to have a party!

There couldn't have been a better spot for the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration kick-off party

They went all out with a delicious dinner and these scrumptious desserts…yumm!

The dessert table was very popular

We had a blast meeting more bloggers and Disney folks. While I would have loved for my family to have come, it was nice to relax and talk girl talk, especially since Kristie lives in Atlanta and we only see each other a few times a year.

I was able to bring one of my favorite friends to the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration

Next it was on to the Rivers Of Light Show, a special treat since it wasn’t yet open to the public. The show was beautiful and if you’re going to Disney World, you should add it to your itinerary. I used to think of Animal Kingdom as a daytime park but there are so many new nighttime attractions that it’s just as fun to stay late.

We got a sneak peak at the new Rivers Of Light Show at the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration

The grand finale was the Tree Of Life Awakenings and it’s amazing how Disney magic brings the tree to life. This is one of my favorite new Animal Kingdom attractions.

The tree of life comes alive at night in Disney's Animal Kingdom

Finally it was back to the hotel to get some sleep…or if you’re like me, stay up way too late on the computer! Day 1 of #DisneySMMC had been pretty awesome and I couldn’t wait for day 2 to begin!

Disney Social Media Moms Celebration Day 2 Feature

2017 Disney Social Media Moms Celebration Day 2

 

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Thanks for sharing these amazing pictures of your trip with us! I’ve always dreamed of going too. I’m so happy you got the opportunity. The food looks amazing!

Thanks for a little behind the scenes look. Great post!

Awesome! I’ve been waiting for details since you left! I can’t wait to read about the rest of the trip.

Congratulations on being offered the opportunity! Like you said, it’s a coveted opportunity! Can’t wait to read about the other days!

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