Welcome to the first stop aboard Magical Blogorail Black. Enjoy the ride as we share with you family traditions in Disney!
I grew up going to Disney World, and my family has a few fun things that we've always done together:
-Starting and ending the trip at Magic Kingdom. There's something magical about walking into Magic Kingdom on the first day of the trip and then making it the last thing you see! We've always done this, and that has now carried over to my trips now that I'm married with my own little family.
-Going into Pinnochio Village Haus and waving to people riding it's a small world. My family (Mom, Dad, and siblings) and I always liked to eat here and get one of the "special tables" overlooking small world. The last couple of trips I've taken with my husband (and daughter), we haven't eaten there, but we've gone inside and taken in the view. I love it!
-Buy a magnet. My husband and I started buying magnets at special places we've gone, and our plan is to fill up a giant deep freeze someday with all of our magnets. we can still fit them on the fridge right now, but I can't wait to cover a bigger surface with magnets! :)
-My husband and I started this tradition on trips we take alone: we grab a snack and sit right in the center of Fantasyland and people-watch. IT IS THE BEST!!! I call these moments "Mickey's Premium Moments" because that's the snack Kurt always gets, and it really is what I consider premium time on our vacations. It really is one of my favorite things.
-I have to see Beauty and the Beast : Live on Stage a million times each vacation. Belle is my dream role.
-I have to admit.......the Grand Floridian has become a new tradition. :) It's worth it to us to save ahead of time for it. We might not be able to take incredibly frequent Disney trips because of it, but that environment just can't be beat!
-I ALWAYS spend an exorbitent amount of time in the Disney Christmas shops. It's a major problem. But I don't consider it a problem.
-And finally, because this list could go on forever, a big tradition for me is getting teary-eyed each trip. Something always does it to me! Walking down Main Street, riding one of my favorite classic rides, experiencing something new and awe-inspiring that Disney has created, watching the fireworks, hearing the Monorail guy start his speech, watching my daughter's face literally light up a million times, laughing with my family as we create new memories. Inevitably, each trip, I have a few happy tears. :)
The best part about Disney World is that there are a million new traditions my family can start! I'm so excited to create new and unique traditions for us each time we visit our favorite place.
When I saw Amanda's post about this YouTube video, I absolutely knew I had to give my commentary! This will probably not interest ANYONE, but I had a blast reliving these memories! So fun!
:10 - I will probably be given a scarlet letter for this, but I've never actually seen Steamboat Willie in its entirety. I've seen the 2-second clip shown here in various places, but I've never seen the classic that started it all.
:27 - The witch in Snow White scared the HECK out of me for the longest time. Like up until last year. I kid, but really - she is a piece of scary animation if there ever was one.
:32 - Does anyone else find Pinnochio a little boring? There are such sweet, classic moments but then I find myself using it for background noise a lot of the time?
:35 - I actually had the original Fantasia on today, and I've come to the consensus that while I really do appreciate the original animation, there's something really fantastic (fantastic Fantasia?) about the all-encompassing experience of PhilharMagic. Seeing it on that scale and getting splashed with water at the end has spoiled me.
:45 - Is there a mother on this planet that doesn't weep beyond belief at this song? Seriously.
:58 - What the?? What cartoon is THIS from?!
1:00 - Most annoying piece of Disney animation EVER. And I'm usually incredibly defensive of anything and everything Disney ever made. But man, this makes me want to take twelve Aleeve.
1:05 - Again, WHAT is this from and why can I not look away from this?
1:18 - Another embarrassing confession: The most I've seen of "Song of the South" is on Splash Mountain.
1:27 - JOHNNY APPLESEED!!!!! Here's my memory of that one. When I was in Kindergarten, we watched this cartoon. I was so PUMPED because I knew that after the cartoon, it was my turn for Show and Tell. After Johnny was over, we walked back into the classroom, and there was my mom, holding our new kittens for my Show and Tell time. I was so proud, and it was literally the best day of Kindergarten ever. I will forever associate Johnny Appleseed with kittens, Kindergarten, and my mom. Sidenote: My mom loves this cartoon, so it was only fitting that she was waiting there, smiling for me, right after we had finished watching it.
1:47 - Love that my little girl now enjoys Cinderella as much as I do!
1:53 - Alice in Wonderland was always a little bizarre and confusing to me. Anyone?
2:03 - I love the little opening numbers from the classic Disney Sing Along Songs! So vintage.
2:08 - Peter Pan = AMAZING. Love this humor, not only because it's set in London, but I love the music, animation style, and HUMOR. It's a really funny movie!
2:11 - Whale of a Tale! I had never heard this song, but in the early 90s I had a collection of classic Disney songs on tapes. They were blue tapes and they came in really pretty packaging with a neat little booklet. Did anyone else have that set? Anyway, lots of songs I never knew existed were on those tapes, and this was one of them. I thought it was weird that he was singing about all of these women, but whatevs - it's fun.
2:18 - Yeah, I'm really glad Mickey and Minnie have had Extreme Makeovers since then. I'm all about vintage style and retaining original details, but this is creep fest.
2:31 - Pretty sure my kids are going to grow up on old school Mickey Mouse Club. I love it, and you can't beat it.
2:35 - This is another rando song that was on the blue tapes! And he's a cutie!
2:39 - Sleeping Beauty was my FAVE movie as a kid. I would act out scenes from it all the time. Now, as an adult, I love the art and animation style of the movie. Very Mary Blair/Eyvind Earle. LOVE.
2:46 - My dad and I are both obsessed with the ranch house on The Parent Trap. We have sketched out the floorplan and I'm pretty sure I'll build it one day.
3:00 - In my dream world, Julie Andrews and I are BFF.
3:12 - Those sneaky animators! Recycling for different movies!!
3:24 - Jodie Foster was comedic GENIUS in Freaky Friday! Seriously, her timing was impeccable.
4:25 - Even though I barely remember this movie, for some reason this song is forever etched in my mind?
4:30 - HONEY I SHRUNK THE KIDS!!!! I had this movie memorized! My family would rent it really often because we loved watching it together. Great movie.
4:35 - If I were to pinpoint when Disney began literally blitzing and invading the kids' market with merchandise, The Little Mermaid would be it. I was absolutely enraptured with STUFF from this film! Bedding, school supplies, toys, stickers, PANTIES. I had it all. And I would lay on the ground and push up on my arms and pretend that water was splashing all around me. Even at the beach, I tried this gesture to see if I would feel like Ariel did when she belted "Part of youuuuurrrr WORLD!!!!!" and the waves would crash all around. Good stuff.
4:41 - Disney Afternoon, please come back. PLEASE.
5:04 - Beauty and the Beast was the first Disney film I remember seeing in theaters. My mom and her friend were snickering because they thought it was funny that Belle was able to somehow hoist the Beast onto her horse after the wolf fight.
5:16 - Is this Homeward Bound?!?!!?
5:25 - I never in my life saw Hocus Pocus, but the posters absolutely terrified me. I had a nightmare that I still remember to this day. My dad and I were trapped in a warehouse with the three witches from this movie. I woke up absolutely terrified and I still am when I see images from this movie!
5:34 - THREE MUSKETEERS!!! I watched this with my friend Taylor when I would spend the night at her house. We were obsessed. We had major crushes on the Three Musketeers!!
5:39 - I've never celebrated Halloween really, but now that Kurt and I have been to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party and they play this theme throughout, I actually have happy associations with it!
6:04 - For some reason I associate the movie Pocahontas with my sister. I have no idea why. Maybe because she really, really liked it?
6:21 - I remember when Toy Story came out! My family went to the theater and we laughed until we CRIED. Also, it was amazing to see the first computer-animated film from Pixar.
6:37 - Oh my gosh that's Katherine Heigl. I KNEW I had seen her somewhere before Roswell and Grey's Anatomy!!
7:21 - I'm kind of obsessed with the song "Go the Distance." And yes, I'm being totally serious.
7:50 - Bear in the Big Blue House, PB and J Otter....Roly Poly Oly.....LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!
8:00 - My siblings and I still sing the "Out of the Box" goodbye song. We're waaayyyy into the harmonies.
8:17 - "My Date with the President's Daughter" is probably the most underrated movie EVER. It is amazing!
8:31 - My sister and I thought this B*Witched song was just the coolest thing ever.
9:19 - "Even Stevens" was another example of superb comedy. Truly genius!
9:21 - "Lizzie McGuire" = a classic. Congratulations on your pregnancy, Hillary Duff.
9:48 - I jammed to "You'll Be in My Heart" just about everywhere. It was a pump-you-up love song.
9:50 - Can I buy the Zenon movies on DVD??? Because I totally would.
I snapped this picture of my husband watching "Robin Hood" with our daughter, because it's a very special memory for me with my dad. One of my very first memories of my life was when we lived in Orlando, and my mom had somewhere to be one evening. My dad put on Robin Hood and we ate candy Conversation Hearts while watching it together. I had to have only been around three years old. Thanks for the memory, Dad!
My mom visited Disney World not long after it opened in 1971. Tonight I was thinking about what the World must have been like in those early years, and how much it's evolved since then. However, enough has remained the same to keep everyone sentimental. I believe that this was Walt Disney's genius: dancing between progress and nostalgia.
I found the special on YouTube highlighting the grand opening back in 1971 (it's in six parts):
And once you saw the special above, you would surely want to take a vacation to Walt Disney World, right?! This is what you would have seen on TV encouraging travel to the new World. The commercials have come a long way, right?
Here's another promo reel by Disney, featuring some great vintage footage:
And here were some fashion statements in the 70's:
Here's a great video of the now-extinct attraction, Mickey Mouse Revue. I had never seen or heard of this attraction, and I'm so glad I found this video! I'm a sucker for Audio Animatronics, so this is right down my alley!
Did you know that this same attraction was revived at Tokyo Disney?
Welcome to those of you joining me from Manda's Disney Blog and those of you just hopping aboard! I am the 3rd stop on our Magical Blogorail. Today we're introducing ourselves and sharing why we started our Disney blogs. I am so excited to join the Blogorail team! There's nothing better than being surrounded by people who "get" the Disney obsession, speak the language, and can refer to things by nicknames (i.e. "The Poly") and everyone gets it.
My name is Ashley, and around here I call myself Mommy Mouseketeer. I am married to the greatest guy in the world, and we have one daughter, Evy Kate (rhymes with 'chevy'!), who is two years old. We're also in the process of adopting our son from South Korea! We've named him Liam, and he'll turn one on July 1st. We hope to travel to get him sometime in August or September. Those are the basics, and here's the background!
When I was a few weeks old, my parents moved to Orlando, where my father was the college pastor at First Baptist Church of Orlando. Needless to say, a lot of the college students in his ministry worked at Disney World, and at that time Cast Members could sign people in free (!!). So from the time I was literally weeks old, I was at Disney World! My mom and her friends would decide to lunch at Epcot for the day, or just take us to the Magic Kingdom on a whim. Although we moved from Orlando when I was 4 years old, something was ingrained in me from all of those hours spent in the World. Growing up, we visited Disney World every few years, and that pattern has continued.
That's me in the Mouse Ears.
This is a family trip from 2005. From left, that's my dad, my little sister Andrea, my little sister Alyssa, my brother Will, me, and my mom.
My husband had the OPPOSITE experience! He was one of three brothers, and he grew up in Mississippi. Obviously, 12 (or more) hour trips to Florida with three young boys just wasn't enticing. Finally, in the DEAD HEAT of summer, 1986 (I was only one year old then - ha!), his parents decided it was time to try. They loaded up in an RV along with Kurt's grandparents and made the eternal trek to the Holy Land. They camped at Fort Wilderness, and thank goodness their RV was air-conditioned, because it was around 100 degrees outside. When we were dating, I asked Kurt about his experience with Disney World and Disney Culture (this was an imperative question when trying to find my spouse!). He shared that his only experiences had been 3-hour-long lines, excruciating heat, and all-around misery. Oh, and his twin brother got lost coming off of Dumbo. Less than ideal. They did try again in the summer of 1988, with similar results. Obviously I knew I had some work to do!
In the above picture you'll see my husband (far right) and his brothers around the ages of their infamous first Disney trip.
We got married and a year later I got pregnant with Evy. We decided to take a "Babymoon" to Disney World in October of 2008, and it was absolutely the most wonderful trip we shared since our honeymoon! We had an absolute blast, and Kurt couldn't believe the difference weather, planning, and dining reservations make! We traveled again together in October of 2010 (Evy was still a little young at that point), again having a wonderful trip. Then, in January of 2011, Kurt's side of the family planned a family trip to Disney World. I planned the entire trip, and everyone had a MUCH better experience than back in the '80's!
Evy receiving the Official Blessing while in the womb!
Enjoying the Brown Derby. I still crave the Cobb Salad, even while not being pregnant!
Evy's first Disney trip, January 2011. It was fantastic!
Her expression says it all!
Mommy Mouseketeer came about when I knew I was entering the season of life to experience Disney as a mother. I've been told there's nothing like seeing your child experience Disney World, and during our January trip, I saw that firsthand. It was just incredible, and so incredibly emotional for me. Long before I saw Disney through Evy's eyes, I wanted to create a place to document my love for Disney, my planning tips, and special memories. I've even had the fun experience of interviewing several of my friends who are Disney fanatics like me! Tons of friends have asked me to help them plan Disney trips, and I wanted to be able to point them to one place with all of the information. Mommy Mouseketeer is a combination of all these things, and I hope it reflects just how much I love the World that Walt created.
I'm so glad you're here, and I look forward to many fun loops together!
When I was growing up, one of my favorite things about the Christmas season were the Disney on ice specials. I absolutely LOVED watching them each year! As far as I know, they don't make the television specials anymore, and I so wish they did. I specifically remember the years 1992 and 1993 because I was SO INTO figure skating (I was around 7 years old and totally obsessed with Nancy Kerrigan, Tara Lipinski, etc.). Enjoy these memories with me!
I LOVE the blog "Hooked on Houses," where you can always get your "house fix." Julia does an awesome job of writing about celebrity homes, movie sets, etc. I LOVE IT.
Julia wrote a post about the homes used in the original Disney movie "The Parent Trap," starring Hayley Mills. The ranch home in this movie is one of my favorite homes of all time. I was absolutely overjoyed when Julia featured it!
I absolutely love to look at Disney Fine Art. I liken it to looking at concept drawings for an architecture project, building expansion, etc. The artist takes the concept and paints a beautiful picture of what your feelings are when you experience the scene--not necessarily what your eyes actually see.
That's how I feel about Disney Fine Art. All that I love about Disney and the stories that have been told are represented in these beautiful works of art. Here are a few of my favorites.
So This Is Love by Harrison Ellenshaw
Waiting for Peter Pan by Harrison Ellenshaw
The Glass Castle by Peter and Harrison Ellenshaw
The Knighting of Pooh by Peter and Harrison Ellenshaw
Moments Away by Rodel Gonzales
Off to Home We Go by Peter Ellenshaw
Practically Perfect by Peter Ellenshaw
The Mystical Kingdom of the Beast by Peter Ellenshaw
