Category Archives: Disney at Home

Disney at Home on the Weekend!

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Louisiana Crepe MyrtlesI don’t know about at your house, but at ours the weekend goes by WAY too quickly!  Seems like the hours between Friday afternoon and Monday morning are shorter than those during the rest of the week.  Whoosh!  Weekend’s over!  This weekend was especially packed with fun and Disney!

Fall has arrived and with our next trip to Walt Disney World just two weeks away, I realized how much still needs to be done!  So I kicked it into high gear over the weekend and got a few things accomplished.

Saturday, Junior got his Halloween costume finalized.  I’m 100% sure he doesn’t care about dressing up for this holiday or any other, but I care, so he indulges me.  I went with Star Wars and am really happy with the cuteness level!  What do you think?  Doesn’t Junior make a cute Tauntaun?

Sunday, I ran 7 miles as my longest training run of the week.  It seems I’ve got to run a half Junior as a TaunTaunmarathon to run a half marathon.  Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it?  In order to NOT start at the very back of the pack for the Disney Princess Half in February, I’ve got to prove I can go the distance in less than 3.5 hours.  I’ve run several half marathons in the past, but not in a couple of years, so I need a recent qualifying time.  I’ve decided on the East Texas Half in Nacogdoches, Texas on November 16th.  Who doesn’t want to run 13.1 miles for their 50th birthday?  Should be fun, right?

I was really hungry after all that running and decided I could cook up something fattening and delicious while crossing another item off my Disney New Year’s Resolution List.  After our Tutto Italia dining experience in May was such a disappointment (very poor service, very mediocre food), I wanted to use a recipe from the Tutto Italia of the past – when they had both awesome service and delicious dishes!  I’m not giving up on them forever at Walt Disney World (Epcot’s World Showcase, Italy Pavilion), but I’m giving them some time to work out their current kinks before we go back.  In TaunTaun Canine!the mean time, I’ll keep whipping up some happy memories at home!  I decided on the Gnocchi with Spinach and Gorgonzola Cream Sauce.  I took a picture of the finished product to show you, but, well, it’s kind of ugly so I changed my mind.  Let’s just say that my first attempt at gnocchi from scratch was a little rough – they were not pretty, uniform little pieces of pasta.  Thankfully, they tasted absolutely divine (in spite of the dish’s humble appearance).  I used this recipe from Allears.net.

Finally, after waiting for what felt like forever, Season 4 of Once Upon a Time started Sunday night.  It was worth the wait!  I won’t go into detail since you either watch Once and you’re with me in my excitement OR you don’t watch it and don’t care.  I will say that I was not expecting Kristoff to be so perfect.  I thought Anna was spot on (Elsa not so much) and having Marshmallow make an appearance was a great (and fun) surprise.  I wasn’t expecting to like the Frozen takeover, but so far so good!

Did you add any Disney to your weekend? 

Disney Collectibles – No Dwarf Left Behind

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1950's Vinyl Doc from Snow WhiteDon’t ask me how we ended up with such a wide array and volume of items in our (mostly Joseph’s) Disneyana collection.  I adore the lunch boxes, comic books, and record albums.  The books, watches, and mugs – yes, I totally get why we have all of those.  I understand the attraction of every single lovingly curated item…except one.

Several years ago, it seems, a well-worn, somewhat faded and tired lone figure made its way into the collection.  Still bearing his antique store price tag, this bespectacled gentleman seems to have joined our menagerie for a solid $4.  He seems a bit lost, a tad lonely, and a lot dirty but was once a part of something really special.  As it turns out, our little vinyl Doc figurine was actually manufactured in the late 1950’s and, predictably, was part of a complete set of 8 characters.  (See the original set here.)  I feel certain Doc took up residence in our home after Joseph spotted him in one of his favorite stores and, a lone Dwarf, without his friends, could not be left behind.Doc from Snow White 1950's Vinyl Figurine

Touting the features of purchasing this set of toys, the original box read, “Walt Disney’s Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs. Entire Doll and Dwarfs Made of Miracle Vinyl. Washable Rooted Hair. Finest Details of Face, Hands, and Body Ever Achieved. Completely Unbreakable from Head to Toe.”

I pass by Doc on the curio shelf where he resides many times a day – usually without notice.  This weekend, though, I had Snow White on the brain and Doc caught my eye.  I decided he could use a little attention and at the same time, I could satisfy my curiosity about the little guy.

Eighty years ago in 1934, Walt Disney began his serious pursuit of bringing Snow White and the Snow White's Doc Figurine 1950'sSeven Dwarfs to animated life.  He was meticulous in his plans – scrutinizing every detail until he could achieve perfection.  For the first feature length animated film in movie history, Walt Disney was serious about making his dream a success – critics referred to the endeavor as “Disney’s Folly”.  They would be surprised by Mr. Disney’s achievement.  The movie premiered to wildly receptive audiences and is today regarded as one of the greatest movies ever made.

Back to our little guy.  In Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Doc’s animated character, voiced by veteran actor Ray Atwell (1878-1962), was scripted to be the leader of the Dwarfs – self-important, yet somewhat bumbling.  He turned out to be an adorable, much loved persona who, thanks to a little research, now holds a special status among his curio cabinet companions in our home.

Do you collect any Disney toys or collectibles?  What’s your favorite item?  1950's Doc Doll

Disney Pirates I’d Love to Meet

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Captain Jack Sparrow Photo Op on Castaway CayAvast me hearties!  We be settin’ sail on a mighty adventure.  Hop-to ye scallywags, hoist the mizzenmast and swab the deck – It be International Talk Like a Pirate Day!  Park yer dungbie and grab some grog, landlubber.  Arright, Matey, let’s parley!

Happy International Talk Like a Pirate Day!  In honor of this most auspicious occasion….

Here are Five Disney Pirates I’d Love to Meet (and why):

1. Captain Hector Barbossa – Oh, sure, Jack Sparrow is quick-witted and charming, but if I actually got to choose a pirate to meet from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, it would be Barbossa, without a doubt.  He’s edgy, learned, appreciates the finer things in life and has a certain mystery about him that makes me want to spend some time in his company and find out what makes him tick.  What was his childhood like?  What made him into a seemingly greedy and ruthless salty dog?  For real, I’d take meeting Geoffrey Rush over Johnny Depp any day.

2 and 3. Captain Hook (both of them!)Emma and Hook OUAT

  • Peter Pan’s Nemesis, James Hook (voiced by Hans Conried) – Even though he’s a cartoon, I love him!  Childish, spoiled, paranoid, and manipulative – what’s not to love about that?  He’s got a great sense of style and some pretty impressive facial hair.
  • Killian Jones (played by Colin O’Donoghue)  – Once Upon a Time’s dark, yet vulnerable hottie.  Easy on the eyes with a lovely accent, this Hook has been making viewers swoon since he appeared for the first time in Season Two.  Now that we know his past, he’s all the more lovable and I’m sure you’re with me in hoping that he and Emma will work out their differences – or at least give into their mutual attraction.  Finally.

4. Blackbeard from 1968’s Blackbeard’s Ghost – Played by Peter Ustinov, Blackbeard is cursed upon his death to wander in limbo.  The only way for him to move on is to perform a good deed.  If you haven’t seen this film, you probably won’t understand how Blackbeard made the list, but hey, my list.  It’s Peter Ustinov.

Disney's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea5. Captain Nemo from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (James Mason)- I know he seems ruthless, but I’d love to tour the Nautilus and see all of Nemo’s inventions.  Plus, he had such flair and a really fine beard.  When he wasn’t being diabolical, I bet he was a heck of a great host.  Esmeralda, his pet sea lion, would be pretty awesome to meet as well!  Remember the ride at Walt Disney World?  I rode it just one time in 1990.  Good times.

Who would you have on your list of favorite Disney pirates? 

 

 

 

Raised by Muppets, I Turned Out Just Fine

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Sesame Street Super-FanListen my friends and I will share with you the true story of a long ago childhood.  Back in ancient times, the 1970’s – in the days before microwave ovens, cable TV, and VCRs.  In the days where boys and girls walked alone to school (in all kinds of weather, year-round, five miles uphill, both ways), played on rusty playground equipment which sat atop concrete playgrounds, rode in cars without seatbelts and happily suffered the effects of second-hand smoke all day, everyday.  Unimaginably dangerous, but happy times.

Begin Flashback Sequence Now …..

By the time I started Kindergarten in 1970, my stay-at-home mom had decided to go to work, I’d earned some street smarts in the rooms and playgrounds of Harrington Park Nursery School and at the hands of under the influence of my much older siblings, who were 9, 10, and 13 years my senior.  I was ready to take Hillside My Own KermitElementary by storm while I became what is regrettably referred to as a “latchkey kid”.  Luckily for me, Sesame Street had been on the air for nearly a year.  It was my go-to show after school and before suppertime.  Bear in mind there were a whopping FOUR channels of television programming from which to choose.  I know, impossible to believe, right?  The three major networks (ABC, NBC, and CBS) and PBS (Public Broadcasting Service).  During the hours between school and the call to the dinner table, the networks tended to show some incredibly boring stuff – at least to my nearly six-year-old self.  PBS rocked!

Ernie and Bert, The Count, Big Bird, Cookie Monster, Oscar the Grouch, Kermit the Frog and many, many others were a huge part of my childhood.  Thanks to the Children’s Television Workshop‘s educational programming initiative, I was entertained while being taught my colors, shapes, Fozzie the Bearnumbers, letters, and even body parts!  Songs like “The Rubber Ducky Song” “It’s Not Easy Being Green” and “I Love Trash” were perennial favorites.  I may have been left to my own devices, but I was smart enough to let those Muppets help me along.

Flash forward to 1976…

A lot in my life had changed.  I was a worldly fifth-grader that fall and had left the likes of Elmo and Mr. Aloysius Snuffleupagus behind.  We’d moved half-way across the country and everything familiar had also, like my favorite Sesame Street Muppets, been left behind.  What I needed was some lighthearted, comic relief – and low and behold, Jim Henson and his band of sarcastic mischief makers were there for me!  With the premier of The Muppet Show, I fell in love with the Muppets all over again.  Pigs in Space, the Swedish Chef, Lou Zealand, Fozzie, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Kermit, Statler and Waldorf – they were there, with a much more grown up humor, just when I needed them most.  While it wasn’t by any means the best bit in Muppet Show history, the memory of those Babies singing “Deep in the Heart of The Muppet ShowTexas” with Dale Evans still cracks me up! (Watch it here.)  The Muppet Show, those beloved characters performing with my favorite actors and comedians became a very important part of my life.

In 1979, the Muppets’ place in my heart was sealed forever…

I was by then smack-dab in the middle of the most awkward year of my existence.  The7th grade was typically difficult, but to me, I was all alone in my Junior High angst.  Bad hair, bad skin, socially inept.  The horrors and indignity of a girl’s life at that age are indescribable.  That summer, The Muppet Movie thrilled and delighted theater audiences (and ME) with the perfect blend of super stars, Muppets, comedy, and epic musical numbers – Some of the best songs Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem ever produced were on that soundtrack.  On December 22nd of the same year, John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together premiered on TV.  There was not one second of that program that I did not love.  The music was incredible, the album (actual vinyl) was purchased at the earliest opportunity and to this day those songs (not on vinyl) are a part of every one of my annual Christmas playlists.

The subsequent string of Muppet movies, some hits, some misses, has sustained my The Muppet Movierelationship with my Muppet “family” through the years.  Muppet Treasure Island had some very entertaining parts and A Muppet Christmas Carol is a seasonal must-watch at our house.  I like the newest Muppet movies alright, but thought Lady GaGa and The Muppets was an abomination.  I grew up with these guys and I am extremely protective of them!

From some of my earliest memories, the Muppets have been an integral part of my life and they helped shape me into the person I am today.  They were there for me after school, made me laugh when I was an insecure tween, and are forever intertwined with my Christmas memories.  I know that MuppetVision 3D at Disney’s Hollywood Studios is highly criticized as being worn, old, and outdated, but those puns, Rowlf the Dogsight gags, and characters are part of who I am!  I was raised by Muppets…and I turned out just fine!

Have Muppet thoughts or feelings?  Please leave a comment!