2016 Disney Social Media Moms Celebration Recap! #DisneySMMC

You know that incredible feeling when you FINALLY achieve something that you've quietly dreamed about for years? I've been feeling it for the past few months ever since I got the congratulatory email that I was invited to attend the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration at Walt Disney World Resort. I was able to attend DisneySMMC with my family from May 5-8th and it was everything I dreamed it would be and more.

When I started blogging in 2012, I didn't really know about all of the fun and adventurous things that were out there for bloggers to experience. I just needed a creative outlet and little by little my blog grew. Spring of 2013 was the first time that I noticed the #DisneySMMC hashtag on social media and I followed along as bloggers from around the country shared their experiences at Disney. I watched the excitement again in 2014 and 2015 and hoped that one day I'd get an exclusive invitation to attend. The thing about Disney Social Media Moms Celebration is that there is no way to apply; you just hope that your inbox will be sprinkled with Pixie Dusted in the form of an email from the Walt Disney World Special Events team. This year was my lucky year!

The 2016 Disney SMMC was held at the Disney's Yacht Club Resort and I reserved my spot about 3 minutes after the email arrived (I told you I was excited). The property is absolutely gorgeous and I was thrilled to be able to bring my husband, 2 kids, and my mom along with me. I knew they'd enjoy the awesome planned activities, the hotel pool and the fact that the beautiful New England style hotel is conveniently located near Epcot and Hollywood Studios. I've attended a few Disney press trips in the past so I knew that Disney goes all out to ensure that bloggers have an amazing experience, but I didn't really know what to expect from the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration. The conference center at the Yacht Club was all decked out when we arrived and I felt so honored walking through the grand halls. Our itinerary was packed (just as I expected) and I couldn't wait to see how the trip would unfold.

The first event was the scheduled for the night of our arrival. There was a short networking event for attendees followed by a special dinner at Disney's Animal Kingdom for everyone (attendees and their families). My husband and I took our almost 4 year old son to dinner and left my mom and 11 month old at the hotel because I knew she wouldn't be able to hang until 9:30 at night. I'm really glad we made that decision because it was so much fun to spend some one-on-one time with just my son, especially at Disney World!

My son loves The Lion Guard! Happy to reconnect with @ABCretivLearnin @RaisingWhasians @DoubleDutyMommy

Friday, May 6th kicked off general sessions (for attendees only, while our loved ones had free time to explore the parks - a 7 day park hopper was included in each person's registration fee). We started off at Disney's Hollywood Studios for a lovely breakfast provided by Alamo Car Rental (and speaking of Alamo, they surprised us with a fabulous gift the night before - you can see it in my slideshow video below). During breakfast we heard from Michael Roddy, the show director of Star Wars at Hollywood Studios, about all of the fun and exciting things coming to Hollywood Studios in the coming months. If you're a Star Wars fans, Hollywood Studios is a MUST visit - and make sure you stay for the Symphony in the Stars fireworks event. After breakfast we got to tour the Launch Bay and meet Chewbacca and Kylo Ren (who is just a tad intimidating!).

With @DoubleDutyMommy and @TheEyesofaBoy

After our time at Hollywood Studios, we made our way back to the Yacht Club Resort for general sessions. This was truly a celebration of all things Disney and there was tons of inspiration to go around. Being in a room with almost 200 insanely talented bloggers, YouTubers, and social media influencers is already pretty awesome, then Disney took it up several notches with the following speakers:

• George A. Kalogridis, President of Walt Disney World Resort
• Theron Skees from Walt Disney Imagineering
• Mark Renfrow from Walt Disney Creative Entertainment
• Nancy Kanter, Disney Channel
• Suzanne Todd, Producer, “Alice Through the Looking Glass”
• Lindsey Collins, Producer, “Finding Dory”
• Erin Glover and Jennifer Fickley-Baker, Disney Parks Blog
• Charisma Star, YouTube extrodinaire and Maker
• Abigail Atzkin, Disney/ Dream Big, Princess

We got to hear about all of the upcoming Awaken Summer events at all of Disney's theme parks. There are truly spectacular things happening at all 4 parks this summer, but after hearing from Mark Renfrow, I cannot wait for the night time entertainment at Disney's Animal Kingdom. We got a little preview of the Tree of Life coming to life at night and it was AMAZING. Be sure to check out my slideshow below to see the video clip. We also got to meet some pretty special little ladies that are doing incredible things in their communities. The entire afternoon was uplifting and made me feel so motivated. And, speaking of uplifting - our sponsor Hanes gave us a very uplifting surprise in the form of new (super comfy) bras. Thank you Hanes! We also got some great potty training advice and tips from Huggies.

After general sessions were over we got a little bit of free time to enjoy the resort. The Yacht Club is located directly across from the Disney Boardwalk so we took a leisurely stroll over in our Joovy ScooterX2. Besides a beautiful hotel, there are great restaurants to grab a bite and a bakery to get some sweet treats.

Later that evening we got to attend Donald's Beach Bash at Typhoon Lagoon, presented by GoGo SqueeZ. My son had such a great time! He got to play in the sand, eat yummy food (all of the meals served at this event were delicious and they have a great variety of food for everyone, plus they take special care if you or your family members have food allergies), and he got to meet some of his favorite characters. That's one of the wonderful things about going to Disney SMMC - the experiences they arrange for you and your family are just unparalleled.

The next morning included breakfast and a special screening of Disney's Alice Through the Looking Glass. There was also an optional family friendly event with Doc McStuffins. This was held at Disney Springs and if you haven't been there then you need to go! There is SO much to do at Disney Springs and there are even more shops and restaurants opening.

The rest of the day was free to enjoy the parks, so we headed to Magic Kingdom. It was our baby girl's first visit and we had such a great day together as a family. The highlight of our day was when our little guy got to meet Mickey Mouse (in case you weren't aware, he even talks to you!). He's always adored Mickey so this was a really magical moment for us.

Disney SMMC closed out with a very special Mother's Day breakfast at Epcot. The food, the venue, the entertainment - it was all perfect. They made all of the mothers feel so loved and appreciated. We also got to meet some of our favorite Disney Princesses and our families got to see the new Dream Big, Princess initiative (which I LOVE!).

Photo credit: Preston Mack / Disney

Special thanks to the Disney Moms team and everyone on the Walt Disney World Special Event team for inviting me to this event. It was literally a dream come true and I'll treasure the memories forever!

If you liked this post, you should check out:

5 Tips to Make Your Visit to Magic Kingdom Even More Magical

8 Things You Must See and Do at Disney's Hollywood Studios

5 Reasons Why You Need to Visit Disney's Animal Kingdom

Disclosure: I was invited to the Disney Social Media Moms Celebration and paid a registration fee that included a hotel stay, meals, experiences and Walt Disney World theme park admission. All opinions are 100% my own.