Hi! We are the Cornelious family, Jules, Toya, Joya and Harleigh and welcome to our blog. We started this blog because….Well let me tell you a story first.  

Toya and I did not grow up true Disney fans. We knew the players, Mickey, Minnie, and the rest of the Fab Five, but going to Disney every year was not our family tradition. We had been to Disney World a couple of times as children but at that time, most families with young children tried to go at least once. So we were not born into Disney. 

We took our first Disney vacation as a family in September of 2013. The girls were 3 and 2. At the time I continued to debate with Toya about why we should not go until the kids were old enough to remember it. Toya’s position was that we would remember it. Boy was she right. The memories created at that time were priceless. Seeing the excitement on Harleigh’s face when she first met Cinderella. I remember how big Joya’s eyes got when she saw Sofia the First. It was for sure worth it. The funny thing was we still did not become Disney fans after the two week Orlando trip with 5 full park days. We thought that we had taken our once in a lifetime trip and maybe (just maybe) we would do it one more time when the girls were older.

Over the next 2 years, Toya and I contemplated taking a Disney cruise. We had taken several cruises before we were married and had kids. It was our preferred way to travel; however, we were not confident about taking one with the kids. We had too many fears and made up stories in our heads about how we would not enjoy it. Family friends of ours been on the Disney Dream and said it was the best thing ever. She gave us many reasons to not be concerned and talked about the added benefits like the kids club. So in 2015 we did it! We took the Disney Dream out of Orlando for 3 days. It was a great time. The kids got to see so many characters that they did not see the whole two weeks of our Disney World trip but we still were not Disney people lol. It did not fully convince us. 

By now you are probably like, well dang why did you create this blog then? I do not blame you but please stick with me. We shared our experience with the family that suggested the cruise and their response was “No, No, No! If you aren’t hooked, you didn’t do it right!”. We are taking one together and we will show you how great it is. In 2016 we took a 5 day out of Miami. This time it was the Disney Wonder. Ok! Now we were convinced, hooked, even obsessed. We were shown all the things we missed out on the first go around. We took full advantage of the kids club and explored the Adult areas. Took notice to the little things like the décor and detail on things. Our eyes were fully opened and we quickly decided that this could be our family thing. In fact we ended up booking another one the following year and it was a Star Wars at Sea.  We were definitely certified Disney fans. Well, Disney Cruise line at least. We were still not Disney people.

The last part of our story was speaking to family friends that were TRUE Disney fans. We did not know this information when we met them. Harleigh was in the same preschool class as their oldest daughter. That is how we met. As time went on our routine seemed to mirror each other. The biggest thing was the kids were taking swim lessons together which allowed us to get closer. We told them about our time on the cruise ships. We were excited to share our stories and experiences. They in turn mentioned we should consider joining the Disney Vacation Club (DVC). We were thinking, “No way, cruising is our thing”. We did not want to be tied into a time share and just go to Orlando every year. Like I said, our circles overlapped and we received more and more info and reasons why we should consider DVC. Then an opportunity came in the mail-Stay at Disney’s newest edition to DVC, Copper Creek for five days at a reduced rate. All you have to do is sit with a DVC representative for a presentation. Ok, not a bad deal. We can do this. We can stay on a Disney property and take advantage of all the amenities. Sounds like a win. The one thing we agreed to was to go in with an open mind. To make a long story short, Kenny Flynn, our DVC guide, was the final piece to our growing Disney puzzle. In 2017, we became DVC members and the rest was history.

Thank you Mulryne Family for opening our eyes to Disney cruising. Thank you Kern Family for showing us that Disney World is much more than characters and rides. We love you both. 

Since then we have become annual pass holders, DVC members of 3 properties, and Platinum Castaway members on Disney Cruise line. That is why we started this blog-to share our experiences, tips, and love for Disney. We realized we had a lot to say every time someone asked us “should we do a Disney cruise or how is Disney World?” We learned a lot over our cruise and Disney vacations and we are still learning and ready to share everything.

Thanks for reading,

The Cornelious Family