Disney Wordless Wednesday: Attractions

One of my least favorite attractions!!

Magical Creations and Celebrations by Disney Donna Kay

I am a lucky girl.  I have the best friends ever- from college until now, I've been surrounded by wonderful people.  Even in my blogging life,  I'm surrounded by the best!

My sweet Disney friend and fellow Auburn fan, Donna Kay has showered my with goodies from her etsy shop, Magical Creations and Celebrations!  Over time, she has shared a decal I have on my laptop, a mailbox address decal, t-shirts and more!

The Love Experts: Frozen's Trolls

We enjoy Frozen at our house.  We saw it in the theatre, we own the DVD, we have the digital copy for the iPad and my 22 month old says "Let a gooo" each time we get in the car.  However, we still think it's a "girl movie."  It has princesses.  'Nuff said.

When I decided to join this Frozen Blog Hop Party, it took C-man and me a while to decide what we would do.  Everything was so girly, he said Olaf was used too much, and we couldn't come up with anything for Sven.... Then we remembered the trolls!  Trolls are ugly, dirty, and basically rocks.  Three things that describe boys!  We were on to something.

While I wanted to throw a full fledged troll party, we just didn't have time.  Summer is crazy around here, so we settled on a few crafts and a few desserts- just the two of us!

Our first project was to create our own trolls out of river rocks.  Ours aren't as cute as the examples I found on Pinterest, but we still had fun making them and C-man thinks they are great!  

While I was getting some of the supplies at the store, I found gray Crayola Model Magic clay.  We tried to make our own trolls out of clay, but they turned out worse than the rock trolls!  Again, C-man thought they were wonderful- even though he said they looked more like pigs than trolls!

Finally, we did our treats.  It seems like every time we make a Disney treat it involves a cupcake.  Frozen was no exception.  We made chocolate cupcakes and tinted the icing gray.  These were the trolls in rock form!  We sprinkled green sprinkles on the top to represent the moss.  I just wish I could have been creative enough to make the sprinkles in a swirly pattern.

Our second treat also used chocolate, grey tint and green sprinkles.  We made Oreo balls, dipped in gray tinted white chocolate, with sprinkles on top.  Again, rocks with moss.  Not the most creative, but fun and DELICIOUS!  

We had so much fun making our Trolls to look at and our rocks to eat!  What would you create to represent "The Love Experts" in Frozen?

An InLinkz Link-up

Frozen Dress Giveaway!

For all the Frozen fans who have been trying to get the ever popular Anna and Elsa dresses for your princess, here is your chance!  Enter to win a Frozen Giveaway that includes an Anna AND Elsa dress and an Elsa crown and accessory kit!  All of these items are official Disney Store products and were purchased exclusively for this giveaway.

The Anna dress with cape is a girls size 5/6. The satin shirt features faux bodice of black velvet decorated with glittering screen art flowers, and edged in gold satin. An Anna cameo highlights the neckline. The detachable cape has a faux fur trim and self-stick fabric fastening. The top skirt is made of organza with a scalloped hem and glittering floral detailing. The underskirt is made of satin and tulle.  (Please note, the Anna dress does have a slight tear in the organza top skirt which can be easily repaired.)

The Elsa dress is also a girls size 5/6 and has a bodice of dangling metallic “icicles” edged in sliver metallic “icicles” and covered with organa panel. The neckline features an Elsa cameo. Mesh shoulders and sleeves have an ombre effect and glitter. The attached organza cape glitters with snowflakes. The top skirt is made of organza and the underskirt is made of satin and tulle.

The next item is an Elsa Fashion Accessory Kit. The kit includes a set of coronation gloves, icicle necklace & earrings, and a light-up clip-in hair piece.

The last item is an Elsa crown. The crown has a silvertone finish with crystalline iridescent jewels. It is on a metal headband with combs for a secure fit.

Good Luck to all the little princesses hoping to win this awesome giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

◦Giveaway starts Sunday, July 27, 2014 and ends at 11:59 pm on Saturday, August 9, 2014
◦This “Frozen In Summer” Wardrobe Giveaway is open to all residents of The United States of America, 18 years of age or older.
◦After verification of entries, the winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter and will be notified by email. Please provide an email address that you check daily, so you don’t miss the winning email!
◦To officially accept the prize the winner must reply by email within 48 hours.
◦Prize will be mailed to the winner by My Pixie Dust Diary.

The following blogs participated in this giveaway:
http://www.focusedonthemagic.com
http://www.magicalmouseschoolhouse.com
http://www.disneydonnakay.com
http://disneydaybyday.com
http://www.distherapy.com
http://thedisneykids.com
http://www.candoitmom.com
http://www.adisneymomsthoughts.com
http://www.disneymamas.com
http://www.homeiswherethemouseis.com
http://www.mouseearsmom.com
http://onthegoinmco.com
http://www.wdwhints.com
http://superheroesandteacups.com
http://www.mypixiedustdiary.com
http://www.runwalkrepeat.com
http://greatwdwtips.com

Disney Freebie Friday: Movies at the Resorts

image of Caribbean Beach from disneydaybyday.com 

Did you know all of the Walt Disney World Resorts offer regular FREE outdoor movies? Build a Better Mouse Trip has a great resource for seeing what movie is playing at your resort each night.

image of Yacht and Beach Club from disneydaybyday.com

Most resorts use a large blow up screen that is located on the beach, by the pool or in a grassy area at the resort.  Fort Wilderness has the best set up with a campfire and s'mores, a sing along, and a visit with Chip and Dale prior to the movie.  They also show a different movie each night of the month.  Other resorts will show the same seven movies each week of the month- (Example: Sunday- Frozen, Monday- The Little Mermaid, Tuesday- Cars, Wednesday- Mulan, Thursday- Winnie the Pooh, Friday- Aristocats, Saturday- Mary Poppins).

Where at Walt Disney World would you like to see an outdoor movie?

Disney Wordless Wednesday: WDW Sinage

All About #DisneyQuest

One thing that our family is looking forward to experiencing on our next trip to Walt Disney World is DisneyQuest at Downtown Disney’s West Side.  When our oldest son went to Walt Disney World the first time, he was 5.  On the second trip he was 7 and the last trip he was 10.  While this past trip would have been the best time for him to experience DisneyQuest, it was not practical for his 2 year old brother, so we did not visit.

The first time I went to DisneyQuest was in 1999. I don’t remember much about it.  What I do remember is that any video game junkie would love it!  My oldest son is not a video game junkie by any means, but he does enjoy a good video game which is why we think he would like it!  If you have a tween or teen age child who does enjoy gaming, I suggest you try to incorporate this into your Disney vacation.

At DisneyQuest, you can participate in some of the Imagineers greatest ideas.  You can participate in virtual reality, 3D and classic games from your past.  The cost per person is $37-$43 if you don’t have this option added onto your park tickets.  It’s opened Sunday- Thursday from 11:30am-10:00pm and Friday & Saturday from 11:30am- 11:00pm.  Tickets and operating hours are subject to change without notice.

DisneyQuest is divided into four “zones” located on 5 different floors.

• Explore Zone, a virtual Adventureland where guests are immersed in exotic and ancient locales. 
• Score Zone, a superhero competition city where guests can match their gameplaying skills. 
• Create Zone, a private “Imagineering” studio for artistic self-expression and invention. 
• Replay Zone, a carnival on the moon where guests experience a retrofuturistic spin on classic rides and games. 

Some of the attractions you can experience are Pirates of the Caribbean (navigate a pirate ship, fire cannons and race for gold), Virtual Jungle Cruise (ride down a river avoiding obstacles), Might Ducks Pinball Slam (life size pinball game), CyberSpace Mountain (design and ride your own virtual roller coaster), Ride the Comix (battle the villains as you virtually fly), Aladdin’s Magic Carpet Ride (fly your carpet through Agrabah in search of the magic lamp and Genie) and Buzz Lightyear’s Astroblasters (pilot a bumper car and battle the other riders by shooting asteroids).

What is your favorite part of DisneyQuest at Downtown Disney?

Disney Freebie Friday: Legos at Downtown Disney

image from lego.com

There are a few FREEBIES at the Lego Store at Downtown Disney Marketplace. 

1. My family loves to take pictures with the big Lego creations outside the store!  Photos are always free to take!
2. My boys love playing, for FREE, with the Legos in the store.  We could create for days in there!
3. Another fun FREE thing at the Lego Store is the monthly mini model build!  On the first Tuesday of every month, kids ages 6-14 can create a mini model for FREE and take it home!  The builds begin at 5:00 until supplies last.    Models are not for sale and cannot be purchased.  Each month, a new model will be available.  Arrive early to make sure your child gets to participate.  One free lego mini build per child.

On August 5, your child can build the adorable monkey pictured a the top!

Disney Wordless Wednesday: Water

Future Fanatics

There are several things I love in life: my God, my family, my friends, my church, Disney, and Auburn University~ to name a few.  Recently I was contacted by Fanatics about creating a blog post featuring photos of my kids cheering our our favorite team.   When I spent some time on the Fanatics web site I was thrilled to find so many Auburn items!  They had perfect items for a day of tailgating and items to use everyday around the house.  My son LOVED the Angry Birds dressed as Auburn fans!  I had hoped to find Mickey Mouse in Auburn attire after I was so surprised to find my favorite mouse wearing NFL attire on pillows, blankets and t-shirts.  Maybe I'll make a request! :)

Even though this is primarily a Disney blog, I'm happy to share my love of Auburn University with you... along with my Future Fanatics!  Enjoy our photo tour.

Auburn University is located in Auburn, Alabama, about 2 hours southwest of Atlanta, GA.  

   

Aubie, the tiger, is our mascot.  Meeting Aubie is a great way to practice meeting characters before a trip to Disney!

 Along with meeting Aubie, we like meeting band members, majorettes and Tiger Paws (dance team) prior to football games!

 

If we are lucky, we get to see our favorite Auburn cheerleader, Francie, after the pep rallies!

My favorite tradition at Auburn is rolling Toomer's Corner after a victory.  These pictures were taken at the "final rolling" of the old Oak trees (before they were poisoned).  While the tradition will continue, it won't be the same.

Here are my Future Fanatics after a long day on "The Plains" at Auburn University!  War Eagle!

  

Disney’s Planes: Fire & Rescue Product Line {Press Release}

Obviously, our family of three boys loves Disney!  We love the parks, the movies, the clothes and the toys.  In a world where Frozen is all around, it's nice to see something for boys show up!  Disney Consumer Products recently debuted a new line of products for the upcoming release of Disney's Planes: Fire & Rescue.  We are so excited about this movie and I feel certain at least one of these products will make it's way into our home in the near future!

To tweet this release, copy and paste http://bit.ly/PlanesFireAndRescueProducts to your twitter handle with the hashtag #FireAndRescue

Disney Freebie Friday: Ghirardelli at Downtown Disney

Some of the best chocolate I've had is Ghirardelli.  One of the best desserts I've had at Walt Disney World is the Hot Fudge Sundae- 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream with homemade hot fudge, whipped cream, chopped almonds and a cherry.  You can get it in a waffle bowl or a glass dish.  Delicious.  Sadly, that was not free!  

What is FREE at the Ghirardelli Shop at Downtown Disney is the chocolate squares!  Visit the Chocolate Shop side of the building and you'll get a free sample of chocolate.  This is a must each time we visit Downtown Disney!  :)

Disney Wordless Wednesday: #DisneySide

Papa Murphy's Fresh Pan Pizza

Since we drive to Walt Disney World, we usually pack a lot of food for our trip!  We've even been known to mail stuff to our resort.  Since I have become a Papa Murphy's Mom, I thought pizza would be a great addition to our food stash for when we have a resort with an oven!  

When we drive to Walt Disney World we enter the Central Florida area on I-75 South, take the Florida Turnpike to Florida 429 toll Road and take Exit 8 toward Walt Disney World.  The Papa Murphy's Restaurant is only 3.8 miles off the Florida 429 Toll Road and 18 miles from WDW!

The next time you are traveling to Walt Disney World and want to get a great pizza for your family to cook at your resort, consider stopping at Papa Murphy's for a Fresh Pan Pizza!

Dressing for July 4th at Walt Disney World: Magical Blogorail Red

Welcome to those of you joining me from Frontierland Station and those of you just hopping aboard. I am the 2nd stop on our Magical Blogorail.

Each time I go to Walt Disney World I spend quite a bit of time planning what we will wear.  Will we wear matching shirts or matching colors?  Will we wear whatever we want?  Will we at least wear a shirt with a Disney theme or character?  I ask myself all these questions and more!

When the topic "Celebrating America at Disney" was chosen for this month's loop, I immediately thought about what I would wear to the parks if I were to celebrate America's birthday at Walt Disney World!  My first task was to do a google search.  I was able to find more than I thought for my family!

Magic Band Budget App {Press Release}

To celebrate the grand launch of the "Magic Band Budget App", they are hosting a giveaway! A $25 Disney store gift card, Disney Parks Magic Band Bandits - Set of 4 Park Charms, and a free download of Magic Band Budget App for iPhone IOS are up for grabs! For more information, head over to http://www.magicbandbudget.com/contest/.

Charlotte, NC- For release on July 1, 2014. -If you have ever used a Magic Band wristband at Disney, you know that feeling in your stomach when your account bill arrives; dread. Magic Band Budget app is designed to keep the fun in your Disney vacation!

Magic Band Budget is the first iPhone app of its kind dedicated to help Disney guests save money while at Disney World or Disneyland. This innovative budgeting app helps you track your spending, keeps you aware and in control of your Magic Band account balance, and also includes many other helpful features for guests.