Disney Diva's Favorite Things

#5: The Disney Diva pits Tinker Bell against the Gimme Meltdown

- by Kristin T. Scroggin, December 8, 2010

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Tinker Bell Presents

My husband and I have two children: a son, 8, and a daughter who just turned 4 at Disney World in October. With such young children, it's no surprise that as soon as the Halloween decorations are up, we start talking Santa.

Oh, you know what I mean:

"Don't hit your sister, Santa is watching."

"Santa knows when you tell lies about jumping on the couch, you better watch out."

"Santa isn't going to like to hear that you and your brother are fighting all the time."

Santa is our HERO when it comes to misbehaving children for 55 days of the year. But what about the rest of the year - because, let's face it, "the Easter Bunny is watching" just doesn't have the same ring to it nor does it produce the same results.

Luckily, we found a way to apply the "Santa" technique to our Disney trips. It's not Santa watching the Diva children while on Disney property. It's Tinker Bell!

Tinker Bell brings children who've been good that day a special gift after bed-time: a present and a trail of pixie dust (glitter). If the child hasn't been good, then Tinker Bell leaves a message in the pixie dust such as "behave" or "mind".

Before you ask, yes, absolutely Tink sometimes does NOT leave presents. When that happens, behavior is ship-shape for the rest of the trip.

Along with behavior modification, Tinker Bell also helps cut down on the greed factor.

For example, if we go into a Disney store and one of our kids begs, "ohhh, I really want this", we say: "well, maybe if you're good, Tinker Bell will bring it".

Then one parent takes the kids off somewhere while 'Tinker Bell' buys the present and either has it sent to our resort (if it's big) or stuffs it into a backpack when no one is looking (if it's small). Tinker Bell also has been known to 'pre-buy' presents at Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Walgreens prior to a trip to save on expenses.

One of the best things about Tinker Bell Presents is that it helps my kids not spend all their hard-earned chore money on fluff. They wait until our LAST day at Disney to spend it because they're unsure what Tinker Bell might bring them.

But what if your kid has 'aged out' of Tinker Bell Presents?

Try "Cranky Coupons", a concept created by Kris Bordessa in Disney's Family Fun Magazine. Kris concedes that family members are entitled to short periods of crankiness, pouting, and general grumpiness. The catch? When you must have a mini-meltdown, you have to 'pay for it' with one of your coupons. You can read the article on-line and print your own Cranky Coupons. GENIUS, Kris! GENIUS!

For younger kids, however, you wouldn't believe how well Tinker Bell Presents cuts down on 'gimme' meltdowns. Fewer fights, less fussing, more FUN!

Don't stop there! Check out more Disney Diva's Favorite Things...