In just two weeks, the PassPorter Moms Podcast will record and celebrate it’s 200th episode. Wow.
When my co-host Sara suggested we do a podcast together, I remember thinking, “How on earth could I do that every week? I am an Introvert with a capital I!” But someone once said that we only grow when we do the things we think we cannot, so I eventually came to terms with the idea and we began practicing nearly four years ago. Our first episode was in January 2010. And we’ve been having a great time on our podcast ever since and we are fortunate to have many wonderful listeners!
To celebrate the 200th episode, we’re going to do 200 random acts of pixie dust for our listeners! PassPorter will randomly pick 200 active listeners to receive a PassPorter’s Walt Disney World Online Edition, PassPorter’s Disney Cruise Line Online Edition, a month in the PassPorter’s Club, a PassPorter Pal pin, a PassHolder Pouch, or a PassPorter PassPack, with one lucky listener receiving an iPod Shuffle.
We want to give these things to our most loyal listeners who believe in pixie dust as we do. So to be eligible, we want you to tell us about a random act of pixie dust you did, one that happened to you, or even one you witnessed … and we want you to SHARE it with others somewhere online to keep the magic going. So post it on Facebook, Tweet it, put it on Google+, Instagram, the PassPorter Boards, or e-mail it to a friend. Find a way to share it, show or tell us what you did here (or via e-mail to podcast (at) passporter [dot] com), and you’ll be in. But you need to do it by Monday, November 11, 2013 at 11:59 am ET to be eligible. Are there 200 of you out there who believe in the magic of pixie dust? We’re going to find out!
So what is a random act of pixie dust? It’s our way of saying be kind and generous to one another. We mention it frequently on the podcast (episode 177 is all about the pixie dust!), and you can read it more about it here. It can be simple or amazing — everything counts.
We will keep a list of all eligible listeners on this page so you’ll know if you’re in the running. We’ll announce the winners on air during our 200th episode, as well as online.
Here are tips on sharing your random acts of pixie dust and getting noticed:
- If you share it on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, or the PassPorter Boards, please include the #passportermoms hashtag (be sure to include the #) and make sure your post is set to public.
- If you e-mail it, please copy podcast (at) passporter [dot] com
- Remember to post here (or e-mail us) to make sure we spot your random act of pixie dust story! Feel free to put in links.
We look forward to hearing from you, reading your stories, and spreading our own pixie dust on our 200th episode — listen to on Tuesday evening, November 12, 2013.
[Update: Check this list to see if you’ve won!]
Eligible Listeners for the 200 Random Acts of Pixie Dust:
- WDWJill
- Tina
- Koren Mae Schoenleber-Boström (Facebook)
- Alyssa (e-mail)
- Jenny
- Katherine
- Silvercat
- KeeperSyd
- Amanda
- John Reilly (Google+)
- Jessica Neadow
- Jessica Lauren McMasters (Facebook/Email)
- Sue Kurovsky (Facebook)
- Vj Shearm (Facebook/Email)
- Mary Neal
- Lisa B.
- Janice Underbakke Albers (Facebook)
- Shawn Spors-Jahnke (Facebook)
- Chris and Susan (Email)
- Jennifer Lambert (Email)
- Krisy Alexander
- Emily C.
- Suzanne Schultz Richbart
- Scott
- Jennifer Lambert
- Bonnie Scutt
- Cassandra
- Tammy H.
- Diana Carr Williams (Facebook)
- Jackie Cowan (Email)
- Tiffany Andrisani (Email)
- Amanda Nash (Email)
- Vanessa (Email)
- Adam Clagg
- Kymm W.
- Stacy Rector
- Abby Winderman (Email)
- Jodi Strock (Email)
- Dana Spinelli (Email)
- Vikki Wells (Email)
- Matthew Amick (Twitter)
- Angela Amick (Twitter)
- Lani (Twitter)
- Connie Reynolds (Email) —
- Alyssa Mowitz (Email)
- Suzanne Khetagurova (Email)
- Erica Barthel (Email)
- Freya Livsey (Email)
- Sarah Hart (Email)
- Tricia Doe (Email)
- Charles Huish (Email)
- Kelly Quill (Email)
- Rick Porter (Email)
- Eulette McKneely (Email)
- Laura Zugzda (Email)
- Cheryl Mekarski (Email)
- Herman “Bud” Goodman (Email)
- Judy Logan (Email)
- CMCLaura (Email)
- Dawn Steinfeld (Email)
- PJ Pettigrew (Email)
- Donna Collins (Email)
- Chris Kaminski (Email)
- Jennifer Lepine (Email)
- Suzanne Lyle (Email)
- Niki Alexander (Email)
- Heather Dezan (Email)
- Bobbi Lanser (Email)
- Christine DeLaurentis
- Vince Vita (Twitter)
- Suzanne Sevier (Email)
- Sharon Demshock (Email)
- Courtney Sloop (Email)
- Michael Blood (Email)
- Terri Shileikis
- Lisa Noch (Facebook)
- Jan F.
- Beverly F.
- Stacy C.
- Ada (Email)
- Traci
- Kevin S.
- Linda Duffy (Email)
- Michelle Choate (Email)
- Kim McCain
- Christine Shaffer (Facebook)
Don’t see your name after 24 hours? Let us know!
On our last trip to WDW a little boy was crying on the bus and having a real bad day it seemed. My 5 year old took a pin off his lanyard and gave it to the little boy and magically all the tears were washed away and his parents were speechless.
That is priceless and I’m so glad you shared it 🙂
During our last trip to WDW, as our family was getting ready to get in line for ToT, I overheard a family discussing how they wanted to hurry over to TSMM before all of the fast passes were gone for the day. We were fortunate enough to have already went on the ride (first stop) and then grabbed fast passes as we left so we could return later on in the day. The young boys in the group seemed very upset that they would miss out on their favorite ride so I decided to make their day a little brighter and offer them our fast passes. It was great to see their frowns turn to the BIGGEST smiles with this simple act of kindness.
On our last Disney cruise, we stopped back at our stateroom to change out of our dinner clothes before going to the evening show. Our son, who was 3 at the time, pocketed the turn down chocolates left on the bed to snack on later. As we stood in line for the theater, a little girl was in front of us crying. Our son handed her a piece of chocolate and told her that chocolate always makes Mommy feel better. It was funny and awfully sweet at the same time.
We took our first trip to Disneyland this summer. We had 1:00 lunch reservations Wine Country Trattoria. As we finished lunch, we could hear an announcement that a parade was beginning. I asked the waiter where the parade route was. His replied that it would go right by our table in about 10 minutes. I asked if it would be alright if we stayed and watched. He assured us it would be fine and asked if we would like another refill while we waited. We were delighted and felt the relaxing pixie dust. My children are 15 and 13 and are pretty easy travelers. We were having a great trip. A table in the center of the restaurant sat a mom by herself with two young children (under 6). She was having wine trying to take a relaxing lunch. When the parade started the children were very excited and came toward our table to get a better view. My son got up, made room for the children and my husband propped them up to get the perfect view. The mom started to get up, we assured her that they were fine and we kept them while she got to finish her wine in a little peace and we got to see and remember the joy of a parade from younger children.
We were touring WDW in late October 2012, and were in the Magic Kingdom. After lunch that day, we walked slowly round towards New Fantasyland, relaxing and letting our food go down. We admired the new castle walls, and then DH scuttled off a little way to take some photos while I stood at the barrier across the entrance to NF and gazed longingly in. There were cast members guarding the entranceway, and to enter you had to be either a cast member yourself, or a member of their family, and had to be pre-registered and wearing a wristband. I was “ooh-ing!” at the sight of the Beast’s castle, when a tall cast member wearing a CM nametag that identified her as ‘Caroline’ came over to me. She spotted my “Guest of Honor” nametag, (bought at MGM Studios many years ago), and addressing me by name, asked what I was looking at. I told her that I was admiring the wonderful new expansion area, and that I couldn’t wait to be able to explore it when it opened. She then asked if it was a special occasion as I was wearing Bride ears, and I explained that we were on our honeymoon. She asked where my Prince was, and as I was telling her that he was taking photos somewhere, he reappeared and came over to us. Caroline welcomed him, then told us to follow her, weaved her way round the barrier, then said “Goodbye!” and began to walk away from us, back out again! We looked at her, each other, then back at her again – what?? “Off you go, enjoy yourselves!” she said.
Did she really mean this? HAS SHE JUST LET US INTO THE NEW FANTASYLAND THAT ISN’T EVEN OPEN YET??
Yes, she had. She actually let us in when we weren’t cast members or family or anyone special. We could not believe this! After thanking her profusely, we began to explore. I can’t describe how we felt at that moment – the sun was shining, the sky was clear and blue, and we were strolling towards a brand new area of Walt Disney World that we weren’t supposed to be in yet. There were a few other people around, but it was certainly not crowded by any means – what an amazing Random Act of Pixie Dust she performed!
While waiting on Santa to return from a break one year, we popped out some glow in the dark sticks. Princess Too Sweet who was 5 at the time, decided that every child in line needed a glow stick. And lo and behold, we had enough to go around.
The last time we went to disney world while taking the bus home from my 30th birthday celebration dinner a little girl noticed my daughter had the glowing tinker bell that comes on the drink straws and kept telling her dad how badly she wanted one. Being that the waiter has so kindly given my daughter one as well I quietly passed her father mine and said my daughter and I can share. Seeing her face light up made my night
I’ve posted my Random Act Of Pixie Dust on my Google+ page, here’s the link:
https://plus.google.com/101714590752068007143/posts/b6zbPNXp2AN
Posted on Facebook
I want to spread the love or spread the pixie dust. This year at The Niagara Co Fair my mother, a 4h mom, and I decided to do just that!! As every 4H leader is stressed from all the work to get their livestock show started and running smoothly we decided to give them a gift. Popcorn, cookies, huggie drinks, etc to say we are thinking about their group and hope everything goes smoothly. With a card all we asked for of them is to pass it on. Some did not understand or where confused but once they realized what was going they were happy.. Let’s all spread the Pixie Dust Everyday. #passportermoms
I try to spread pixie dust regularly. I always let people with few items go ahead of me in the checkout line. I seem to grocery shop the same day lots of elderly ladies so I frequently help them get hard to reach or heavy items plus my grandkids make them smile. Last Friday at the high school football game; DH caught a t-shirt thrown by the cheerleaders. A little later, a little girl near us tried to get one but was almost bowled over by some bigger boys. She was upset so we gave her our t-shirt. She was a happy camper. We have also been a receipient; DGD was upset on the boat leaving Epcot and this cute little boy gave her one of his pins and explained all about it to her. They became fast friends on the ride and she was all smiles. What a wonderful place the world would be if more people would do these small acts. #passportermoms
This past June my favorite gal, Kaylee (9) and I went to Disney World just the two of us. It was Kaylee’s first visit and my first visit since I was a child many years ago lol. On our last day at Magic Kingdom, we headed toward the last ride of our trip, “Under the Sea”. As we approached, the line was awful and the fast pass time was well after we would need to leave. Kaylee was super sad as we had also just missed the last lunch seating at Be Our Guest. I was trying to console her saying we would just have to make another trip to the world sometime in the future. Well about that time a young lady walked up to us and said she and her family were getting ready to leave and they had two fast passes for ‘under the sea’ and she hoped we could use them. Well Kaylee’s smile was all she needed to see and off she went to catch her family. We happily rode the ride and as we were headed down Main Street towards the exit, we turned for one last look at the castle and I noticed Kaylee was crying. I asked what was wrong and she said nothing. I asked why are you crying then and she said “Everyone’s been so nice here, I’ve hugged Minnie & Mickey, ate dinner with the Princesses, even got my picture taken with Tinkerbell in my hands and got to spend you and me time (my personal favorite). I’m just gonna miss this place so much so I’m sad. Thank you for bringing me here. I love you!” I replied with a hug and tears in my own eyes, “You’re welcome kiddo. I love you so much and you know Disney World’s the most magical place on earth so I’m sad we are leaving to!” We walked hand in hand and waved goodbye to Walt & Mickey and said together “Bye Walt, Bye Mickey! See ya real soon!”…. so today, with this shared email/post, I’m surprising Kaylee and am going to let her read this… “Hey kiddo! Guess wait?!? We are going back to Disney World in 110 days! Walt & Mickey are waiting! 🙂
Thanks Pass Porter Moms!
Okay, this one made me cry at work! (which is where I was reading it, obviously, it didn’t just randomly make me …… never mind!)
OK, so I had to share… I read the post to Kaylee (so i could change my miss spelled “guess wait” to “guess what”, Kaylee squealed with delight and asked me if I had talked to Mickey and Goofy and did they really know we were coming? 🙂 she was recalling the welcome phone call we got back in June when we checked into POP. Of course I said yes and she jumped up and gave me a hug…. just reaffirms my belief the Disney magic really does stay in the hearts of kids & adults everywhere!
My kids at school (I’m a teacher) made decorations for a local animal rescue shelter. We made pumpkins and black cats to decorate the kennels for the Halloween season. I talked to the kids about helping the animals kennels look pretty so they might get adopted quicker. We talked about pixie dust is when you help someone or some animal without bring asked. Pixie dust = kindness. The kennel was very grateful for the decor next month we are going to pixie dust the veterans hospital with letters and pictures and pixie dust the animal shelter again with a bone drive (collect treats for the animals)
Our homeless furry friends need the pixie dust too. : * )
We held my daughter’s first birthday party at a covered pavilion by a popular local playground. The covered pavilion has a rental fee and when you rent it, you get it for the whole day. It was Memorial Day Weekend and the weather was hot and muggy, but still beautiful, and we had a wonderful time celebrating with family and friends! In the early afternoon, as we were packing up, I noticed another mother setting up for her child’s birthday party at some uncovered picnic tables on the other side of the playground. The wind had started to pick up and the clouds were rolling in so I quickly ran over to her and offered the covered pavilion for the rest of the day just in case it was going to rain. She was so grateful and I was happy to keep her child’s party dry!
We love to spread pixie dust magic quite often! I am a cake decorator, and some times, when I am baking a few cakes, I will bake some extra cakes, decorate them up, and bring them to neighbors that may be new to the neighborhood, or to friends who may need a little cheering up for some reason. I love to see the look of surprise and joy that they have…I especially like to do this for strangers, it’s even more of a surprise for them, and makes their day a little brighter!
On our last trip we got a case of water delivered to our room. At the end of our trip we still had half a case left, so we found a nice family that was checking in and passed it along to them.
Here is a quick random act of pixie dust. My husband and I don’t have children, but when we go to WDW or to Disneyland we pack stickers with us of Disney characters. If I see a child that is having a bad time or a little one that is curious with us while at dinner or in line, I like to give the stickers to the kids (with parent’s permission).
The look they give us back is just great and sometimes it’s just the trick to make a sad kid a happy one. I learned this from cast members at the DVC kiosks and other places in the parks who hand out stickers. We once received no less than 50 DVC stickers when we were with friends and their family at a DVC kiosk, so many that we started to hand out the stickers to others because we had to many. That sparked it, who doesn’t love a sticker?
A good friend of mine posted a story about a little girl who got suddenly sick and passed away. She loved taking donations to an animal shelter where she and her family had adopted their pet from. I especially loved the part of the story where her dad had asked her what her favorite color was and she said “rainbow”. She refused to single out one color to choose as her favorite. When I read the story, it brought a tear to my eye. Then, I saw your post about pixie dust, and couldn’t think of a better story/moment to share and play it forward than this story. http://www.wbaltv.com/girls-final-act-helps-homeless-animals/-/9380084/22585592/-/24fyc3/-/index.html#.UnRtAu9-51s.facebook
During our last trip to WDW we were on the bus after a very long day at the MK, and my 5 year old son had a couple of glow in the dark bracelets on. Sitting next to us on the bus were three also very tired children who kept looking at those bracelets.
I leaned down to whisper to my son that maybe it would be nice if we could share the rest of the bracelets we had in our bag with those kids. He nodded and with a smile pulled out all of the rest of his bracelets and gave them to the kids. The instant smiles on their faces were so sweet!!
Since then we’re always looking for more ways to spread random acts of pixie dust. 🙂
xo, thanks for keeping up the podcast…love listening on my way to work!
Cass
A few years ago we had a very unfortunate experience during a room transfer at one of the on site resorts.(looooong story) Our issue was never able to be resolved, but the cast members went out of their way to keep our spirits up. The server & restaurant manager both went above & beyond at dinner that night to make us feel better, even though we told them we were fine & sure that it would all work out. They made sure we had a quiet table & brought us balloons & a bag of candy to take back to our room.
The next day, the guest relations manager gave us 4 free passes to MNSSHP. We thanked her for her generosity, but explained that only 2 of us would be able to use them and we would have no use for the other 2 passes. She insisted we keep them, just in case.
Knowing that we definately would only be able to use 2 of the tickets we saw no reason not to pay it forward & spinkle some pixie dust of our own. When we got on a Magic Kingdom bus that morning, we sought out 2 people that looked like they might enjoy the party. Honestly, you would be surprised at how long it took to find someone to give those tickets to :), but it finally happened.
On a recent WDW trip, my son and I got our fastpasses for Jungle Cruise. When we were passing by early, we noticed a very short line and jumped in, enjoying another day in WDW. As we were leaving the area, the line was getting very long.We decided that we would give away our fastpasses that we no longer needed. But we had to find a group of 2. We noticed a grandmother and her young granddaughter coming down the stairs and looking disappointed at the line that was growing in the regular line. I went over to them and offered our fastpasses to them. They looked really surprised and relieved as it was drizzling rain and they would have been waiting in the rain for the line to move. It was a simple act, yet I could tell it made them happy…and me and my son, too!
Just paid for the car behind me at the drive thru. This is one of my favorite things to do because you never know who’s in the car behind you. Could be someone having a really bad day and getting a free meal or drink could turn their day around.
As some of you know, I am a pastor. Last Sunday, one of our members told me that a group of young adults was going to lunch at the local barbeque place and invited me, my wife, and our little girls. He didn’t know that we had just eaten barbecue the night before, but I enjoy spending time with the members of our church. He mentioned it a few times before and after church, then texted me after they left, then called me when they got to the restaurant to make sure we were coming. After we ordered, he told the server to make sure he got our ticket. He turned to me and said, “You are a wonderful pastor and we want to do something nice for you.” It made my day! God bless you all! 🙂
Whenever we visit WDW we pack lots of little goodies for the kids as surprises but one that isn’t a surprise is glow bracelets. I stock up on them at the Dollar Spot @Target or Five Below and we bring them with us to the evening parade at the Magic Kingdom. We stake our our spot near the Country Bear Jamboree and then my kids get started.
While waiting for the parade to start we hand out our entire stash of glow bracelets to all the kids in the area. After a while they actually start coming to find us! Everyone loves them and my kids love being able to spread their own pixie dust! 🙂
I was at Disney when my son was approx. 2 yoa. This was quite a few years ago but I can picture it clearly. We were at the Pochahontas breakfast at Wilderness Lodge. It was just myswlf my mom and my son. While we were eating the John Smith character came over and started coloring with my son so we could finish our breakfast. I looked around after a bit and found the other characters to be.gone. One of them came back to get him.and he said he was having fun and would rwturn to the forest when he was done. Brandon who is now 18 does not remember it but it always makes me smile 🙂
Recently on an ABD trip to Ireland a planned outing was canceled due to politics. I was unable to participate in the substituted tour of a ship due to seasickness. The next day upon returning to our room I found a book from our adventure guides about the history of the ship and what I had missed. Very thoughtful and unexpected.
This is actually a anytime numerous amount of random pixie dust but anytime I see someone taking pictures of family in an odd place that the normal Disney photgraphers are not I will ask them if they want a picture al together and take it for them. As a single mom travelling with just my son I am usually the one taking the pics so I am rarely in the pictures so I feel for those who are also the “family” photogs. It was also paid back to me though at Crystal Palace, a Dad was kind enough to take some pics of me and my son with the characters as they came around.
Does being the recipient of pixie dust outside of WDW count? Because just the other day, I was a two-time recipient!
I’m currently in physical therapy rehabilitating from a very long illness. The session was very tough and my stepson who took to the appointment thought it would lift my spirits to stop by my favorite coffeeshop for my favorite beverage. We’re getting our order and the lady at the window handed me my drink, but it was the wrong size. I politely mentioned it as my son was handing her the money. Then the lady said, “Oh, I don’t need that. The person in front of you paid for your order and you just keep that drink and I’ll make you another one” 🙂 Talk about lifting my spirits! That double dose of pixie dust made my spirit soar – and my son’s too. We’ve never experienced anything like it. We will definitely pay it forward!
We were on our way home from vacation and stopped to eat supper at a KFC and a worker came out on her break and we could hear a cell phone conversation she was having. We could tell that they were talking about some financial problems they were having and that it seemed they having a hard time making ends meet. In fact the girl was nearly in tears. We still had some left over money from vacation so decided to somehow get it to her. She got up to refill her soda and I went and slid some money under her plate, but sticking out enough so she would be sure to see it and not throw it away. We got up before she came back, but watched from the door to make sure she got it and she did. The look on her face and watching her look around to see who would have put it there was priceless.
We just returned from WDW late last night…we were celebrating both my birthday and our upcoming anniversary. When we checked in at the resort, we were given a coupon for 2 complimentary glasses of champagne at the lounge. We never used them, as we were always at the parks when the lounge was open. Before we left the resort, we decided to stop by the lobby so we could gift another couple with the free champagne!