[00:00:00] Dana: Hi, Alexa. Welcome to the Laid Back Magic Way podcast. I’m so happy to have you on. I’ve been wanting to chat with you for a while because you’ve got a lot of angles, if that makes sense, when it comes to being a mom taking their kids to Disney, because you’re local. You’re a local mom. You own a business helping other moms with their baby gear when they’re not just traveling, but going to Disney World as well.

[00:00:30] Dana: And you also, because of that job, you’re always in and out of the resorts dropping things off, and then you’re visiting the parks as a local too. So we have lots to chat about. But before we get into it, can you just tell me how this all started? Like how did you and your husband get into renting out baby gear?

[00:00:53] Alexa: So I actually was a cast member with Disney too, once upon a time.

[00:00:58] Dana: angle that I didn’t know about

[00:01:00] Alexa: Yes I didn’t mention that part. I was an event planner, with Disney. So that’s another angle of Disney that I have. Now, this was, , over ten years ago, so quite different now, but that has given me a different kind of perspective pre-kids.

[00:01:18] Alexa: And I’ve always had this kind of entrepreneurial spirit. So I worked in corporate. My husband was a firefighter. He was a firefighter for ten years. And while we had our regular firefighter and corporate jobs, , we always said we wanted to do something. We weren’t sure what. And then we came across BabyQuip, and we thought, “Hey, we’re ten minutes from Disney.

[00:01:43] Alexa: We just had a baby, so we know baby gear pretty decently. , This would be a really cool side hustle,” right? So we kinda started as simply as that with a fleet of ten strollers and a couple cribs, and grown a lot in the last three years. So we really fell in love with it, so much that Eric left his firefighter job after ten years to run it full-time about two years ago.

[00:02:14] Alexa: And now I am officially out of the corporate world and running this full-time too. So we’re both full-time entrepreneurs. That’s really interesting, and it’s just been fun to learn and grow together as a couple. I– That wasn’t always the plan to do

[00:02:36] Dana: I was gonna ask that, like how has that been work- ’cause I always think that I would love to work with my husband, and then I’m like, “Would I?” So how is it, how has it been?

[00:02:47] Alexa: I have to say it has worked a lot better than I initially thought it would, ’cause I’m like, “Well, I’ll be going to clash.” He’s always been, I mean, firefighter, more of that blue collar, like hands-on. So he does a lot of the cleaning and the deliveries, and me coming from the corporate world, I’m more of like the marketing and the brain behind all these th- these things.

[00:03:10] Dana: And coming from events even

[00:03:12] Alexa: Defense. Oh,

[00:03:13] Dana: you have to be able to just manage, ’cause I know you have like lots of bookings and dates, like someone has to keep track of all that so you don’t deliver the wrong thing or pick up at the wrong time

[00:03:23] Alexa: Yep. Yep. And what’s really been fun to see is how we both work really well together to help each other with the opposite. So we strategize together a lot, and that’s been fun to bounce ideas off of him, and he has this different perspective of things. Not just like as a firefighter and like safety that I don’t even

[00:03:49] Dana: Yeah, I didn’t even think

[00:03:50] Alexa: he

[00:03:50] Dana: that.

[00:03:51] Alexa: Yeah, that’s big for us is safety and like cleanliness. I’m really big on cleanliness. But also as a dad. So that has been really fun, and being able to bring our son along the journey has also been a really great angle for us because we feel that flexibility and freedom as a family, and we get to spend time together in a different way.

[00:04:22] Alexa: So

[00:04:23] Dana: day look like now if you’re not in corporate? , What does your everyday life look like now versus then?

[00:04:30] Alexa: Still very busy, but, like, a different kind of busy. It feels freeing because I am dictating the times. So we still wake up early, still bring our kid to school, still are working before we pick him up around 5:00, but it can change every day. And maybe one morning I’m like, “Hey, I feel like doing the deliveries.”

[00:04:59] Alexa: So I have everything packed up in the car and go and talk to our customers. That’s one thing I love doing, or getting a little bit of content at the resort or seeing how things are,

[00:05:12] Dana: it’s like a fun resort, you’re like, “Actually, I’ll go.” At like a resort with a good coffee bar, you’re like, “Actually, I think I’ll do the delivery this time.”

[00:05:21] Alexa: Yeah, we’ve done it where Eric and I have gone to breakfast together. 

[00:05:25] Dana: Yeah, that’s nice 

[00:05:27] Alexa: it’s just, yeah, it’s nice. But we’re busy, like very busy. I mean, Easter, this past Easter was our busiest of all. And so that changes things, too. , I’m talking about all the nice things, but the thing about owning our own is, , we’re always on, and we’re always ready to answer people, answer questions, or change on a dime, and that is a little bit new for us.

[00:05:57] Alexa: We’ve been doing it for the last three years, but, , it’s, it has its challenges, but the rewards are, like, so great. And yeah, we get along really well. So I mean, you would hope husband and wife get along really well, but, , we do. , We work

[00:06:16] Dana: some people need like a break from each other, which I understand.

[00:06:20] Dana: I was watching your reel this morning on Instagram.

[00:06:23] Dana: You were talking about, ’cause it was just take your kids to work day. And it’s funny because we actually did take– it was an excused absence. I was like, “Of course I’m gonna pull the girls out of school.” So we went to dad’s job, and my daughter got to do a little bit of quote roofing and, you know, being at the office and things like that.

[00:06:46] Dana: And so they were still able to have like that experience. But you were saying that it was a little bit of a downer not being in corporate anymore and seeing like the little kids, and I loved going to my dad’s office when I was little too. But on the other hand, like how cool is it? Like did you take him to quote, did you have like rentals that day or anything that you were able to take him with you?

[00:07:09] Alexa: We did. Well, he went to school, but we had some rentals after. So

[00:07:15] Dana: does this every

[00:07:16] Alexa: he does it every day. Yeah. So, and honestly I love putting him in school. It’s great having that time for him. And we’re, we’re getting a lot done. So we did take him on deliveries, and like that day I just had a little bit of a mindset shift where I’m like, “Oh, okay.

[00:07:37] Alexa: This is like a, a real take your kids to work day.” And I just explained a little bit more at, you know, he’s five, so five-year-old level, like what we do and why we do it. But he’s– we’ve been doing that for the last three years, so he was two when we started. And he kinda gets the gist of it. “Oh, we’re bringing a stroller for a baby or a crib for somebody, a family who needs it.”

[00:08:06] Alexa: And so he’s, getting it and it’s really cute to see how even he has grown with it and learned some things from it. It’s really… It’s fun. It’s challenging. It’s rewarding, difficult. , It’s kind of all the things.

[00:08:27] Dana: No, it is, I see the pluses and the minuses to both, and I’m picturing… ‘Cause I know I’ve seen you, like, on your s- Instagram Stories and things of, him tagging along with you when you drop off equipment. Obviously, I saw you when you dropped off our stroller. I was one of those people that had a baby and needed, like, a special stroller for my six-week-old ’cause I was absolutely insane.

[00:08:49] Dana: I don’t regret it, though. I don’t regret it. But, like, looking at my, old pictures, I’m like, “You poor thing.” , I remember being in the I think it was the boathouse. It was like, I have babies that get very overtired and scream their little heads off. And it was just, like, one of those really rough nights where I could not…

[00:09:08] Dana: I was trying to nurse him at the table. He was screaming. I carried him f- all the way through the boathouse to the bathroom, and I think I just had him in the bathroom stall with me just trying to calm him down ’cause he was so little.

[00:09:22] Dana: So I was coming out of the bathroom, and there was this older woman, like a grandma age, and she just looked at me and kinda, like, tilted her head, and her eyebrows went up, and she just patted me on the shoulder. She said, “You poor thing.” I wasn’t offended. I told my husband. He was like, “That’s, like, so mean. How, how rude.” I’m like, “No, I, I actually appreciated that more than everyone, like, fawning over the baby ’cause yes, poor me.” It was very hard. It was very stressful ’cause then you’re coming off of traveling and everything like that, too.

[00:09:54] Dana: I think it was, like, the first night that we were there. And I know you’re seeing people when they’re first getting there. They’re like, checking in. What is, the vibe that you get? What are the biggest things that you see are stressing people out when you first see them?

[00:10:10] Alexa: I, I love that you pointed this out because travel days with kids is hard. It is tiring because not only are you probably waking up earlier than usual, but you have to haul all the bags, you have to wrangle your child or children, you– their sleep schedules are off, the routine is off, so you’re already starting your vacation right off the bat with something that’s not natural to them.

[00:10:42] Alexa: And throw in any little delay, and it’s like the world is ending. , , for right reasons. Like, I understand that. So when I see them, it’s usually around the time that they get to their resort within the first five hours or so. Sometimes it’s right when they arrive, sometimes it’s like later in the day.

[00:11:06] Alexa: But for the most part, , they’re still not fully unpacked or like in vacation mode. , So I see a couple different things. I mean, I see people who are like excited, ready to go. I see people who are like get down to business, like, “Let me grab this thing so we can just go and get situated.” And then there are people who are like, “Man, that flight was rough.

[00:11:31] Alexa: Oh, we had such a hard time.” Usually, when I’m delivering to them, the commonality is some sense of relief,

[00:11:42] Dana: Yeah

[00:11:42] Alexa: so nice for Eric and I to see because that’s the thing we do is like our goal is to really help parents. And our way of helping is having gear that packing less because we know traveling with a lot of stuff is stressful.

[00:12:00] Alexa: But also just having something that will be useful for their baby or toddler or child if it’s a stroller that will make their life easier. So it’s really– we see a mix of things. Overall, travel days are not the most fun day of a vacation. I think everyone can agree on that. It is not the day you look forward to.

[00:12:27] Dana: I don’t like traveling with or without kids. Like, I don’t like flying. And I think it is the most unnatural thing that we do that we normalize, and I think every time I’m up in a plane, I’m like, “This is not okay. Why are we pressurized right now?” You know? Like, I just don’t– It’s just a lot on your body in general, let alone having, like, multiple children with you.

[00:12:50] Dana: But then on the flip side, I was thinking, obviously you are providing some of that relief when you see them, and they see everything is clean, and you have all the, like, little extras and things. I know I felt like that. Because you had, like, a name tag and, like, a white noise machine and just, like, things that I– a baby bath.

[00:13:09] Dana: Like, things that I didn’t think… ‘Cause I’m very minimal

[00:13:13] Alexa: Mm-hmm.

[00:13:14] Dana: when it comes to traveling of, like, “I’ll just hold the baby.” Like, “I’ll just take a bath with the baby.” Like, that’s literally how my mind goes. And then as I was using the baby bath, I’m like, “This is so much better.”

[00:13:25] Alexa: Yeah

[00:13:26] Dana: you don’t think that you– if you can’t pack it, you don’t think that you can have it, but that’s why it’s so nice is you actually can have it.

[00:13:32] Dana: You just have to rent it. But then I wanted to ask you, I don’t know when you would see this, maybe as just a park-goer as a mom, or maybe just being around the resorts, of mistakes that people make or don’t realize when it comes to baby equipment. ‘Cause I’m assuming you rent more strollers. Like, is strollers, , your number one thing that you rent out?

[00:13:57] Alexa: Strollers are our number one and our number two are full-size cribs. So I can talk about both separately. Talk about the crib situation first.

[00:14:07] Dana: been think- I was literally thinking about this today because we do the rollaway cribs in Disney World, and I think we can squeak by one more trip. I think he’ll be fine in the rollaway crib. But my friend has a toddler the same exact age as my son, and we do sleepovers a lot ’cause they live out of state.

[00:14:26] Dana: So we were talking about our sleep situation, and she was like, “Honestly, I think we might be past the pack and play days. , He’s really long and might not fit.” So I’m curious, like, how you think of that.

[00:14:41] Alexa: Yeah, every baby and toddler is different, and that’s why one of the things I like to do is really talk through with my guests of what they need. So not just Disney, but other hotels too provide pack and plays. it’s always first come, first serve, so that’s one thing. I mean, typically Disney has enough pack and plays but I have heard of a couple situations where they have run out.

[00:15:11] Alexa: It’s not to freak anyone out,

[00:15:12] Dana: they used to have them in the closets. Like maybe you would know, I don’t even know. I’m trying to think how old my niece is. She’s in college now, but

[00:15:21] Alexa: Yeah

[00:15:21] Dana: she was little, there was a Pack ‘n Play in the closet, and I remember when they like took that away, we were like, “What do you mean I have to call for a Pack ‘n Play?”

[00:15:31] Alexa: I will say, so I just went to Disneyland Paris and we stayed at one of the Disney resorts there and they had a pack and play in the room in the closet. And we went to Disney’s Vero Beach once and they had the pack and play in the closet. I don’t want to know how long that pack and play has been there without being cleaned.

[00:15:53] Dana: know.

[00:15:54] Alexa: it’s just something we see and think about because that’s what we do day in and day out. But we look there and we’re like okay. They have it at least.” But,

[00:16:05] Dana: they have it, but yeah, I get that

[00:16:08] Alexa: But at Disney World, you’re right, they don’t have them in the closets anymore, so you have to request it. So they have pack and plays, but they also have cribs. Now, what a lot of people don’t realize and what- is when they say they have cribs, it’s really a mini crib. And sometimes,

[00:16:25] Dana: like, quote. It’s, that’s why I say, like, rollaway crib just to kind of differentiate that it’s not a full-size crib. I wanna say it’s, like, 30% smaller. Like, I’m gonna measure it next time I’m there.

[00:16:39] Alexa: I have the measurements, so I’ll– Yeah, I’ll actually send them to you. You can even add them in the show notes if you want.

[00:16:45] Dana: Perfect. Yeah, like even like it’s 25% smaller or something like that because I do think, yeah it’s a good size, but it’s not as big as if your kid is used to a big full-size crib, it does feel smaller

[00:17:03] Alexa: Correct. And the mattress, it’s a pretty standard mattress. Pretty thin, like two-inch kind of mattress. So nothing special, and it’s a metal crib. So one thing that we have seen from customers who have done both, where they’ve used that or they’ve rented a full-size wooden crib from us, is it just feels a little more homey, a little more like the same that baby is used to.

[00:17:34] Alexa: We also have Newton mattresses, which are– , if you use a Newton mattress at home, most people would love to have one when they travel because they swear by it. , I know I’m one of those people

[00:17:46] Dana: Yeah, it makes a big difference. Yeah

[00:17:49] Alexa: And they, they sleep well. So another misconception or concern I would say is that, “Oh, well, a full-size crib won’t fit in the room.”

[00:18:00] Alexa: We fit them in like every… I feel like maybe not a hundred percent, but every possible configuration on Disney property because we’ve had them delivered all over. So they do fit. Now, they may be tight but they fit. So we just– we see a variety of what people need for sleep situations, and then we have like a Newton pack and play that’s smaller than a full-size crib, but bigger than a regular pack and play or mini crib, and that’s kind of that in-between, and you can put a slumber pod on it, which is really popular too.

[00:18:41] Alexa: Especially if you’re in a one-bedroom place and baby goes to sleep early. Well, what do you want to– do you want to go to sleep at seven PM too? I mean, some people, yeah. But if you want to stay up a little later without disturbing them and having all the lights on, a slumber pod is also a good solution.

[00:18:59] Alexa: So

[00:18:59] Dana: Yeah

[00:19:00] Alexa: there’s a lot of opportunities for like sleeping situations at Disney.

[00:19:05] Dana: just the big mistake is just thinking… ‘Cause I’m that way, like, like I told you with the putting the baby in. I’ll just take a bath with the baby.

[00:19:17] Alexa: Mhm.

[00:19:18] Dana: I don’t think that’s necessarily like a bad quality, but there is like a threshold of how much do you wanna like toughen this out and, or maybe not spend the money to rent something.

[00:19:31] Dana: Like, I will get very creative. Like, I’ll put my baby, like, in the bathroom or something. My daughter didn’t like a Sonder pod, but I wonder if maybe… I don’t know if Crew would like it. I should probably try it again. But I think just the mistake is not knowing that you can rent things

[00:19:48] Alexa: Right. Right. Most people have no idea that’s even an option. And I’m a lot like you, Dana. I’ll toughen it out. I’m like, “No, I’ll be fine.” And now seeing what convenience could be like, it’s like, “Oh, that’s nice.” So, and, and BabyQuip is everywhere. They have it globally. They’re expanding in more and more areas.

[00:20:11] Alexa: Orlando is obviously like

[00:20:13] Alexa: Hottest market. But it’s very helpful. And sometimes I think as parents we have trouble w- asking for and wanting help ’cause we think we can just do it. And this is like… That’s why I like it so much, ’cause I love helping parents and I can, like I told you, I literally see relief in their face as soon as I deliver something because it will help them.

[00:20:44] Alexa: It just makes it easier on them. Like, yes, obviously on their child, because the child will sleep more. But if the child sleeps more, they sleep more. If they’re comfortable in the stroller and can nap, then they will have a more enjoyable time, and they know that. So, and it’s so hard for us to ask for help with any- Like, we just think we can do it,

[00:21:07] Dana: Yeah, totally. Thinking, swinging back over to the parks ’cause we’re talking about the biggest mistakes with like strollers and baby gear and things like that. You also get to visit the parks, I’m assuming pretty often

[00:21:25] Alexa: Yeah.

[00:21:26] Dana: Check.

[00:21:28] Alexa: we go a lot. Not to make anyone listening jealous, but we’ll like, , pick up our son from school on a random Thursday and just go to Animal Kingdom for like two hours. It’s really fun. So it’s literally

[00:21:43] Dana: dinner, like a quick service dinner. Yeah

[00:21:45] Alexa: Oh, yeah, we do that a lot. It’s literally our backyard. I mean, we’re 10 minutes from Disney.

[00:21:51] Alexa: It’s, yeah, I can’t lie, it’s as awesome as it sounds.

[00:21:56] Dana: That is really nice to just be able to pop in. I know I follow some local people and, , one of them even homeschools, so they’ll do, , just a little homeschooling in the morning and they go to Disney. I’m like, “Dang it,” ’cause it is pretty educational too if you want it to be. So you don’t really have the struggle of, , having to maximize anything, but when you’re just kind of meandering around, what do you see that kind of– ’cause I see it too, where you catch things that just make you really sad

[00:22:28] Alexa: Yeah.

[00:22:29] Dana: ‘Cause you know how much pressure, like you were saying, moms don’t ask for help, and then we’re also putting so much pressure on the trip because we’re the ones that planned it, so if anything goes wrong,

[00:22:39] Alexa: Mm-hmm.

[00:22:40] Dana: it feel, it isn’t, but it feels like it’s all our fault and it’s on us.

[00:22:44] Dana: What do you see when you’re kind of visiting the parks, not stressed, when you see other people?

[00:22:51] Alexa: Yeah. The need to do every ride or feel like they have to go from ride to ride without relaxing and enjoying. And I think we… So yes, we go to Disney World because the rides are awesome. But it’s more than that. And even if you think back to, , what Walt Disney said, it’s a supposed to be a place for families to enjoy together.

[00:23:18] Alexa: He didn’t say to ride all the coolest rides. It’s the atmosphere of Disney is so unique and can be so enjoyable when you really, , take a stroll in an area or stop and look at something. That was something… I didn’t go- grow up going to Disney often for a Floridian, I- I should say. I went to Disney maybe three, four times before I turned, , 15, which is n- again, not super often for a Floridian.

[00:23:52] Alexa: And I always remember my mom pointing out, like, how things were designed and decorated. And it’s little memories like that as a kid that I remember appreciating more of the details.

[00:24:12] Dana: Yeah

[00:24:12] Alexa: And for a while when… ‘Cause I said I’ve lived in Orlando for nearly 15 years, since I was in college. So I had an annual pass, and I used to go a lot with my husband.

[00:24:26] Alexa: He was… We were dating at the time. And we were the go go, let’s do all the rides in our 20s, right?

[00:24:34] Dana: Of course, yeah

[00:24:36] Alexa: And then we had our son during COVID, and the first time we went to Disney we had a day ticket. We didn’t have passes at that time. And I’m like, “Well, it’s our first time in a long time, and it’s his first time.

[00:24:51] Alexa: I wanna spend the entire day at Magic Kingdom and do everything that we can with him.” And by 4:00 we’re like, “We’re going home.”

[00:25:00] Dana: 100%. So how old was he then? Like, do you remember?

[00:25:04] Alexa: 10 months.

[00:25:06] Dana: Yeah, that’s,

[00:25:07] Alexa: Yeah, he was 10 months old or 11 months old, and we used the Mockingbird stroller, which was our stroller that we used, and I still, I love it. But I guess I bring all that up to say I remember listening to… No, it was before you had the podcast. Just some of the posts you made about your three, two, one, right?

[00:25:34] Alexa: And I used that for my son’s third birthday

[00:25:40] Dana: And I’ll just explain it in case people are like, “What the heck is she talking about?” So I recommend this if you’re, like, overwhelmed, like you’re saying your– that first Magic Kingdom day, ’cause Magic Kingdom’s really hard. And I really… That’s, like, the park that started it for me because I wanna say there’s, like, 40 rides maybe.

[00:25:59] Dana: I don’t know. So m- 37 and 40 is popping up in my head, but there’s a lot of rides, and it’s the park that… I love Magic Kingdom, but I hate Magic Kingdom. It has, like, the heart and soul of Disney World to me. But planning-wise, I like, dread it. Like,

[00:26:18] Alexa: a lot.

[00:26:19] Dana: And when we go with, like…

[00:26:21] Dana: Yes, and when we go with, like, our extended family, my mother-in-law is always like, “Ugh, Magic Kingdom,” because it always feels, like, crowded, and Fantasyland is always, like, a bottleneck. So the recommendation that I was sharing about was when you feel that way is to choose three rides that you really wanna do that day, like an actual ride.

[00:26:42] Dana: And that goes very well with Lightning Lanes now. It worked well with FastPass because you can book three or pre-book three. Then you have two experiences, and those are, usually free things that you can do in the park.

[00:26:54] Alexa: Yeah. So we tried that his third birthday, we were spending a whole day. My parents were coming, my sister and her husband, so it was more than just us three, so it felt a little more vacation-y to us, m- more than like a local going. And I’m like, “Well, I want it to be good for them,” even though they’ve been, so it’s not like I have to impress them with anything.

[00:27:18] Alexa: And you know what my f- favorite memory that day was? We were all sitting, my dad goes, “10 Mickey bars, please.” And we all got Mickey bars, and we were sitting in Frontierland all eating our Mickey bars, and my three-year-old had like Mickey bar ice cream all over his face.

[00:27:40] Dana: So cute

[00:27:42] Alexa: Is that a ride? No. Is that like something you have to go to, a destin- No.

[00:27:49] Alexa: But it was that like small moment of family that I think sometimes gets lost in the hustle of having to get everything done. Because if we were in a rush, we would’ve grabbed our Mickey bars and been walking to the next ride and lost

[00:28:10] Dana: and that’s the difference. I think, like people will say all the time like, “Oh, it’s the thing that you don’t plan for that will be the most magical.” But I think sometimes, at least me, when I hear that, I imagine like, oh, we never could have planned for Captain Jack Sparrow to come out, and we had this amazing memory, or we never could have planned that we– our room would get upgraded or something like that where it’s like unexpected magic.

[00:28:45] Dana: That’s not really what we mean or people mean when they say that. It’s that when you prioritize less and do less and just have that mentality, like you said, you’re not rushing to the next thing. If you have this huge to-do list, there’s no room for anything to happen.

[00:29:06] Alexa: Yeah,

[00:29:07] Dana: And that’s when the ice cream things happen

[00:29:10] Alexa: Exactly. And I love your take on things because we’re not saying don’t plan.

[00:29:17] Alexa: There is… Yeah, no. Plan, but you don’t have to overload your plans for every hour of the day. It’s having this base model to allow for things to just happen and enjoy and have fun, and Disney is just one of those all-immersive places that really allows for that at, like, every corner

[00:29:47] Dana: Yeah, from like babies to grandparents are all having a great time. I’ll cry talking about it. But I have to ask, this doesn’t have to be like rental related at all, but I’m curious if you could pick one piece of gear. Like if you had– I know it’s hard because it’s like kids need a stroller, so let’s not do, let’s not do a stroller because I feel like we know that, or I hope.

[00:30:15] Dana: If you have kids and you’re listening and you think they don’t need a

[00:30:18] Alexa: You need a

[00:30:18] Dana: one at home, you need a stroller, and you should push them in it until they are too heavy or the stroller won’t move anymore ’cause I think it’s so nice having a stroller ’cause I’m like, “Where am I gonna put my stuff one day?”

[00:30:34] Alexa: Not gonna lie, Eric and I went to Epic Universe Universal just us two, and we brought our smallest stroller to put all our stuff in. So

[00:30:47] Dana: where am I gonna put my… I’m not carrying my water or a sweatshirt.

[00:30:51] Alexa: Yeah. Yeah

[00:30:52] Dana: know, talk about being like a diva. 

[00:30:54] Alexa: Highly

[00:30:55] Dana: but yeah, if you had to pick one piece of gear that is not a stroller for Disney World

[00:31:00] Alexa: sleep some kind of sleep gear. So whether it’s the full-size crib or the special pack and play, I don’t mean the standard pack and play, or a slumber pod, something that will, your baby or toddler will be comfortable sleeping in. Figure out that sleeping arrangement because that is your reset. Yes, that is the reset for every day that you have for not only your kid, but for yourself to have that rest time.

[00:31:34] Alexa: Whether it’s for nap or for the nighttime, like that is hands down my number thing, number one thing. I say sleep, stroll, and bathe are the three things that I like to keep in mind for…

[00:31:48] Dana: I like that

[00:31:49] Alexa: Yeah, sleep, stroll, bathe. And bathe could be as something as simple as, “No, I’m just gonna hold my baby and shower with it,” and 

[00:31:57] Dana: but at least have like a plan for it, especially in a lot of families, I think too, like when we were going to Disney World with kids for the first time, we had, you know, you haven’t travel- we had traveled, but not with a kid. So it might be, this might be your first trip with a kid. Like maybe you haven’t done like a small hotel or local or something, so you might not even think about a hotel bath or hotel sleep on top of it being like you’re visiting a theme park as well.

[00:32:31] Alexa: Yep, exactly

[00:32:34] Dana: What would you think or what would you say surprises people the most about renting the gear versus bringing everything from home?

[00:32:47] Alexa: That’s a great one. Well, I know for some people what surprises them when they call me in a panic for a last-minute order is that their airline broke their stroller. 

[00:33:00] Alexa: I, get that pretty often. Like, I hate to say it, they lose a wheel or like something breaks on it, and then they need one. But for people who already planned for that and like rented the stroller in advance, one thing that surprises them, I think, is the variety that we offer.

[00:33:19] Alexa: It’s not just the giant Double Bob or the City Mini GT2. Like, those

[00:33:27] Dana: Yeah, ’cause you rent out my favorite stroller, right? The Zoe

[00:33:30] Alexa: Zoe, yeah,

[00:33:32] Dana: I love that

[00:33:33] Alexa: the number one stroller being rented out from us right now. We actually have the most amount of those because it’s so popular, and

[00:33:42] Dana: I love those. I think because, so like we did the Mocking, is it Mockingbird or

[00:33:47] Dana: Mocking? I always wanna say Mockingjay, like the movie. But and that was great for what we needed because we needed like a more of an infant seat. But for older, not older kids, but like that toddler to older and not like big kids.

[00:34:03] Dana: Like I, my kids are pretty little and we’re little. Like I’m 5’1″, my husband is not much taller than me. Like we’re just a smaller family. So having a big stroller or like a stroller with multiple pieces or like a long stroller, I feel like I can’t see, like the Bob, I feel like I can’t see where the front wheel is when I’m like turning and I’m scared that I’m gonna run over someone’s foot.

[00:34:30] Dana: Whereas the Zoe just feels so compact. Like from the handle to the front, it’s really just like my kids’ feet. Like all I have to see is the kids’ feet. I don’t have to worry about like a wheel sticking out is, 

[00:34:44] Alexa: and it’s lightweight.

[00:34:46] Dana: Yes, and I can actually fold it up

[00:34:49] Alexa: Yeah, and we have a couple strollers that are very similar to the Zoe that are great too, and that are infant-friendly. So for someone who wants the Zoe, but they’re going with an infant or a newborn and they want something a little more secure, we have things like the UPPAbaby Minu, we have the Bambi.

[00:35:10] Alexa: We, we have a wide variety. Like, we really get– So I, I like to ask people, like, “What are your preferences in a stroller?” If you could come up with like, “I wanna be able to see my baby. I want a flat recline. I want this.” We have a couple options and then help them decide and choose. The Zoe is, right now, one of the most popular.

[00:35:31] Alexa: The Bob is really popular. That doesn’t mean those are the best ones for you. They could be, but there, there’s so many strollers, and I don’t expect people to know exactly which one, what the differences are. That’s where we come in and try to help out with that. But my goal is to really have something from like newborn through big kid, so that there really is a good range for all different types of families.

[00:36:01] Alexa: Instead of having just like two types of strollers and like, “Well, figure it out. Those are fine for you.” Which, yeah, they may be fine but what’s gonna be great? And that’s what we try to help figure out.

[00:36:12] Dana: I love that. And then talking about the parks again, I know we’re going back and forth between parks and strollers and parks and strollers, but what would be your piece of advice for someone that’s going to Disney World with little kids for the first time?

[00:36:26] Alexa: Find a spot in, like, a land that you really like being in, like a- whether it’s Fantasyland or if you’re in Animal Kingdom and you find a really nice relaxing spot. Go get, like, a snack or something and just sit on the bench and just kind of take in what you did earlier that day. not a full-on midday break where you’re leaving the park and taking a break, but just, like, a little mini break.

[00:36:53] Dana: Yeah

[00:36:53] Alexa: a snack, a coffee, a drink, whatever it is with your kids, whether it’s while they’re napping or not, and just chat about, like, “What was your favorite part of the day so far? What are you looking forward to?” And I don’t know. I think every time I think of something that… like a good memory, it has a snack attached to it.

[00:37:15] Dana: You’re like me.

[00:37:16] Dana: The food with me.

[00:37:17] 

[00:37:17] Dana: thank you so much for being on the podcast. I know this was gonna be very helpful for anyone going to Disney. And I will link all of the things for you in the show notes, your Instagram, where to rent from you. But thank you so much for coming on.

[00:37:34] Alexa: I loved it. Yeah, anytime