Essential Items

When I visit WDW, there are a few items I always have in my bag.  Bringing these items into the park with you will save you some money and make your day a little easier.

1. Duracell USB phone charger With the new magic bands system, it's pretty much essential to have a smart phone whether it's an android or an apple product to keep up with your fastpass+ schedule and attraction wait times.  Disney provides free wi-fi in their parks now so even if you don't have cell service (say you have an ipod touch) you can get onto the free wi-fi and keep up with the fastpass+ program.  This combined with using the camera on my phone drained my cell battery pretty quickly.  I didn't want to stop and charge my phone in the middle of the day, so I put my Duracell USB phone charger to work.  It was perfect! I brought the battery and the USB connector cord and hooked it up in my purse when it hit about 30%.  It charged back to full for the afternoon and lasted a perfect amount of time.  I highly recommend you invest in something like it.  I found the one I have on Amazon.com for about $23. http://www.amazon.com/Duracell-Instant-Charger-Includes-Universal/dp/B002FU6KF2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1389572006&sr=8-1&keywords=duracell+usb+charger
2. Thirty-One Medium thermal zipper pouchI received one of these for free by hosting a 31 party for a friend of mine and it is fantastic!  I put 4 capri suns, a 12-ounce coke for me, and a bottle of water in mine along with a ziploc bag filled with ice cubes from the hotel ice dispensary.  I threw it into the bottom of my stroller and as the kids got thirsty, I'd open it up and give out what I had to share.  It folds flat and is very lightweight so that it's easy to store when it's empty.  If you have access to a freezer, you can freeze the juice pouches and let them thaw over time - this keeps everything cold and means you don't have to worry about melting ice.
3. Retractable Sharpie pensI think these give the best autographs (my kids LOVE characters) and I always buy the Disney autograph books - it's one splurge I always let the kids select.
4. Hand SanitizerI clip hand sanitizer on every bag I carry around and have the kids use it often.  Germs are everywhere so of course, we stop and wash our hands with soap and water frequently also.
5. Sunscreen!
   This seems like a no-brainer, but half-way through the day your sunscreen is wearing off and if you don't bring some with you, you will end up choosing between burning and paying Disney's ridiculous price for a small tube of sunscreen.

I also like having a spare camera battery, sunglasses, and a container of Tylenol (some for me and some chewable for the kids - just in case).  Remember, if anything happens and you need a band-aid or any kind of first aid attention, Disney has places all over the parks where someone can assist you.  Look at the park map or ask the nearest castmember and they'll be happy to point you in the right direction.