Disney Pin-Trading....fun for big kids too!

When I first got my Disney annual pass over a year ago, I had no intention of being a pin-trader. Sure, I admired the collections strung around the necks of tourists....and yes, I was curious as to how anyone could trade with any cast member...but I was not interested enough to get into it.  That is, until I got my first pin....

Soon after we got our Disney passes, my husband presented me with the gift of a lanyard and a Minnie Mouse pin. I laughed, telling him that there was no way I would feel comfortable walking up to random cast members and asking them to trade with me. But then I saw it....a baby-Mickey pin. I had to have it. So I walked up to the Disney cashier (feeling like a child) and timidly asked if he would trade with me. And just like that, the pin was mine! It was so fun! The next weekend, I went to Disney's Character Warehouse at the outlet mall and picked out some of the cheapest pins I could use to trade (around $2.99 each). Now I take my lanyard and pins with me almost every time I visit one of the Disney parks, looking around for any pins that catch my eye. I've decided that I like Mickey Mouse pins the best.  :)

You don't have to be a die-hard pin collector to share in the fun of Disney pin-trading. I don't have albums and albums of pins...I only have 13 on my lanyard right now (although I am thinking about getting another lanyard to fill up with new pins). Every time I find a new pin I like, the act of trading for it creates an experience and a memory that I will carry with me long after my Disney passes expire.