Happy 60th Birthday, Disneyland!

Today is a very special day - 60 years ago today, the gates opened at Disneyland for the first time and as the saying goes, we all lived happily ever after.

As a Disney geek, I can't imagine a world without the Disney parks. To have the vision, drive and chutzpah to create such a place is truly amazing. 

As Walt famously said on that opening day, "To all who come to this happy place: Welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here, age relives fond memories of the past, and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams, and the hard facts that have created America, with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world."

Thank you, Walt, and thank you to the many thousands responsible for the creation of Disneyland, as well as the many thousands of past and current cast members, who help to keep that Disney light shining. It IS still a source of joy and inspiration, 60 years later.

Here's to the next 60!

Have a magical day!

it's a small world - Disneyland style

One of the things I was most excited about seeing at Disneyland were those attractions that are also at Walt Disney World. I knew there'd be some similarities and differences, and I was looking forward to checking those out for myself.

When I arrived at Disneyland that Saturday, May 30th, I got checked into my hotel, freshened up a bit and then headed right over to Disneyland. I couldn't wait to get in my first Disneyland attraction.

So I went over to it's a small world!

The difference from Walt Disney World is apparent right away; the loading for the attraction is outside, so as you line up and step into your boat for the Happiest Cruise That Ever Sailed, you're in the nice California sunshine.

The building that houses it's a small world is ADORABLE. I loved it. Similar in color scheme to its counterpart at Walt Disney World, but with enough differences to still be brand-new to me.

Riding the attraction itself was very cool - it's the small world you've come to know, but with some important differences. In the midst of the animatronic children/dolls that are familiar, you see some of the Disney characters! I didn't know about this difference beforehand, so it was cool to ride it for the first time and check out how the characters were represented. You'll see Cinderella, Nemo and Dory, Woody and Jessie, Donald Duck, Pinocchio, and so many more. When I rode later in the week with my nieces and nephews, my niece and I tried to make up a game and find as many characters as we could.

As our cruise was nearing an end, the ending was also a bit different. At Walt Disney World, you see "Goodbye" in various languages; here at Disneyland, it's post cards from all over the world, letting people know what a great time they're having at Disneyland. Super cute!

I have to say, after going on this attraction - I prefer the Disneyland version over the Walt Disney World version! Having the characters represented is a lot of fun. Next time you're on the attraction, see how many you can count.

Have a magical day!

Dining Review: World of Color Dining Package

As we were planning on June 2015 Disneyland vacation, my cousin and I knew we wanted to see World of Color, the AMAZING nighttime show at California Adventure. (Don't worry, I'll dedicate a whole post to that incredible-ness later.) In reading about the show, I knew how popular it was, and since we had three little ones with us, we wanted to avoid waiting in a line or jockeying for space in what I knew would be tight quarters.

I'd read about the World of Color dining package, and that seemed to be the best bet for us. After consulting the menus and dining options, we chose lunch at Wine Country Trattoria, located near the entrance to Cars Land in California Adventure. (You could also chose to eat dinner.)

We arrived on time for our reservation, and we seated shortly. The format for the meal is prix fixe - for about $40.00 per adult and $20.00 per child, you get your choice of soup or salad, an entree and then a desert sampler. There is also a kids menu with many standard choices - pizza, sandwiches, pasta, etc.

There were many delicious choices and we all tried to pick something different, so we could sample each other's meals.

I chose the salad and it did not disappoint. It was delicious and fresh, and the perfect meal starter. My cousin and her husband both chose soup; one getting the tomato and another the Italian wedding soup. I like the wedding soup the best - the little meatballs were delicious and it was all well-seasoned.

For the main meal, I chose the Potato Gnocchi. Oh MY this was so good - cooked perfectly and a large portion, as well. My cousin's husband chose the salad with sautéed shrimp, and once word got out how good those shrimp where, I think he only had one or two for himself!

My cousin Kim chose a special that wasn't listed on the menu; a pasta with broccoli, which she liked. In tasting the entrees, however, we agreed that my Gnocchi was perhaps the best of what we'd gotten. In the picture below, the items are: Gnocchi at top left, salad at top right, shrimp salad at bottom left and broccoli pasta at bottom right.

I didn't take pictures of the kid's meals but they enjoyed them; they each had a mini pizza and a side of vegetables.

Finally came the grand finale - the desserts! In looking at the menu, we thought we each had to choose something but they bring you a sampler platter with one of EACH of those amazing offerings listed on the menu - DROOL. We had a tiramisu, macaroons, panna cotta and a lemon creme puff. They give a full platter to each two adults, so we ended up with two platters of desserts which was more than enough. All of us, kids included, sampled a little bit of everything. As I gravitate towards fruity things, my personal favorite was the Lemon Cream Puff.

At the conclusion of the meal, our server came to our table with 6 FastPasses for the World of Color show. He told us where to go and the return time for the FastPasses.

However, here's a tip - go EARLIER than they say. On the tickets was printed a time of 8:45 PM, as the show starts at 9PM. However, lines start to form about 7:45ish and they start letting people into the WoC viewing area around 8PM. Ask the cast members where the line is forming for the dining packages, and they'll tell you where to go. This means that you'll be at the viewing area about an hour before the show starts, BUT you'll also have a better chance of standing right near the front. The WoC dining FastPasses are the very front of the viewing area and it's first come standing area only but the view cannot be beat. You will get a bit damp (as they project the images onto water) but it's so worth it.

I would do this again in a heartbeat; in fact, when I go back in November I plan on doing it again and trying another of the restaurants offered.

Have you done this dining package before? What did you think?

Have a magical day!

The First Movin with Mickey Monday!

Greetings, friends! I hope you all had an amazing 4th of July weekend that had both relaxation time and fun with family and friends. I took it pretty easy - went to eat with friends, saw Jurassic World, and caught up on some reading I've been wanting to do. Ooh! And my new, fun colors FitBit Flex bands came via Amazon. (Have I said lately how much I love Amazon Prime? We're dating. It's serious.)

So today is the official kick-off for the bi-weekly feature, Movin with Mickey! First, thank you all for the great response about the blog series. I think it'll be fun and a great way for us to motivate each other. Health is not an end-goal thing; I don't think you can ever say, Well, now I'm healthy, I can cool my heels and rest. Nope, not how it works. Especially as you get older. (Can I get an Amen?!)

Once a month, I'll be giving you an update on my personal progress. My friend Chris with On A Roll Designs will update the map each month, so you can see my steps progress. You'll need to hang with me for a while here, because by my calculations, if I walk an average of 10,000 steps per day (which is about 5 miles), it's going to take me over 250 days to finish this walk. So we're in it for the long haul, folks. Get comfy.

For the second monthly entry, I'll be featuring a reader who is on their own personal journey to health and wants to share their tips, ideas, what motivates them, etc. I've already heard from a lot of you who want to be featured and there are still slots open, so if you'd like to be featured, please email me at katie@mouseworldtravel.com.

But to get started, I wanted to give you some baselines about what I'm doing and how I'm tracking my information for the "walk" to Orlando. I'm not planning on sharing the nitty-gritty numbers such as my weight, but I do plan on letting you when I've lost inches and other progress points in my journey.

Here's the basic info and what I'm doing:

 - I know I need to eat better and make better food choices. I am not interested in "diets" - I want to make lifestyle changes that I can follow and sustain through the next (God willing) 40+ years of my life. I'm adopting an eating plan that my sister has been using with great success, which takes out un-natural sugars (candy, cake, etc) and processed food. I will still enjoy a treat every now and again, but my goal is to make good choices 85% of the time, and allow the other 15% for "cheats" (things like birthday cake, an occasional margarita, etc).

 - I've used a FitBit in the past, but the dongle-thing that plugged into my computer and synced my info broke during one of my trips, and so I've been without it for a few months. I ordered a replacement dongle-thing, as well as some fun color bands (because, accessories) and I'm all armed and ready to go. With the FitBit app, you can also see the progress of your Friends and how many steps they're taking per day. (If you'd like to be FitBit Friends with me, send me an email and we'll get linked!)

 - I took Before pictures, measurements and bought a new scale. I am not someone who thinks that weighing yourself every day is healthy (your body weight can fluctuate from day to day that has nothing to do with what you're eating) but I do plan on weighing myself and taking new measurements once a week. I'll take new pictures once a month, as well, so I can see the progress I'm making.

 - Rewards are important - and so I am going to do something fun for myself once a month. I'm thinking things like getting a pedicure, getting a massage, buying myself a new shirt or pair of shorts, etc.

Thank you again for being so great and taking this journey with me - I'd love to hear how you all stay fit and healthy, recipes you'd like to share with the group, exercises and ways to move that you find effective, etc. I say it all the time but this blog is Full Audience Participation. Let's cheer each other on!

And rest assured, the other posts all month long will be the same Disney-esque goodness you've come to know (and hopefully love).

Let's get started Movin with Mickey!

Have a magical day!

Movin with Mickey - It's Officially On the Move!

Can you HANDLE the cuteness of this?! Chris, you are amazing, girl!!

Happy Thursday, Friends! Hope you all have fun and relaxing plans for the 4th of July weekend. I have about zero plans and that suits me just fine. :)

I wanted to show you something I am SO EXCITED ABOUT I could hardly contain myself. Remember back about a month or so, I talked about the Movin with Mickey feature on the blog? Where I was going to be tracking my steps and seeing how long it would take me to "walk" from my home in NE Iowa to Orlando, FL?

Well, Monday officially starts those posts! AND I have a SUPER CUTE graphic, designed by my gal Chris over at On A Roll Designs. Isn't this ADORBS?! I'm obsessed. I love it so much. You can find her Facebook page HERE and her Etsy page HERE - please bookmark / Like those and contact her for your graphic arts needs.

Every two weeks, on Monday I'll be doing a Movin With Mickey Monday feature on the blog, where I update you on my progress. I'm going to keep track of my steps using a FitBit and I'll update you on my progress. I'll also use those posts to share other healthy tips like recipes, exercises and more. If you have tips you'd like to share, or have been moving towards health yourself and would like to be featured on the blog - please get in touch. I'd love to hear from you!

Have a WONDERFUL 4th of July weekend - be looking for Monday's post! Let's get started!

Have a magical day!

How to be a Considerate Theme Park Go-er (or, Be Gone, Selfie Sticks!)

Let's talk about this picture for a second. I was trying to get my nephew to laugh so I though "let's take a selfie, he'll think that's cute." Yeah, he for sure did NOT. His thought bubble is, "Lady, you are NUTS." As I don't have a selfie stick, you'll have to deal with this terrible selfie picture instead. You're welcome, America.

This week, word came down from On High (as in the Disney World powers-that-be) that starting the end of this month, selfie sticks will not be allowed at Walt Disney World. Previously they'd outlawed the sticks on rides, but now they'll be enforcing the "no selfie sticks" rule at the parks in general. RIP, selfie stick. You'll be missed (that was sarcasm, by the way).

We had a nice discussion on the Facebook group a few days ago about this topic. In addition to talking about selfie sticks, other Theme Park Pet Peeves came up and I thought, what a perfect topic to chat about on the blog this week.

So, without further ado: some ways to NOT be "that person" or "that family" at a theme park.

* Your stroller is made to carry your children through the parks, not as a battering ram.

I sympathize with stroller-users; I've pushed them through the parks and I know that sometimes it can be a pain to navigate through a store or down a crowded street after fireworks. However, that's not an excuse to use your stroller as a battering ram. Mistakes happen and if you clip someone's ankles or feet, please say you're sorry.

And in the interest of fairness - non-stroller people, please don't dash or cut in front of those with strollers. Let them into the traffic pattern. Same goes for those in wheelchairs or on scooters. WAY too many times I've seen a stroller or scooter just have to sit there because people wouldn't let them join the traffic flow. Don't be a jerk, 'k?

* If you need to have a conversation, consult the map, etc - move to the side of the pathway.

This is probably my #1 pet peeve when I tour the theme parks (although it happens in other places, as well). Let's say your group is heading towards a ride, and are unclear about its location. Instead of coming to a dead stop in the middle of the street, please move to the side and have your discussion there, not right in the middle of those who are trying to get by.

The step-sister to this pet peeve are those who walk 7 and 8 people across, taking up the whole walkway so everyone has to move at their pace. At most, you should be walking 3 side by side. Any more than that, create some rows, people.

* Your iPad needs to stay in the hotel room.

I love the iPad as much as the next person. At this point, I should give Apple instructions just to charge my credit card anytime something new comes out because there is a 98.7% chance that I will love it. But you know a place your iPad doesn't belong? At the parks, especially on the rides and during shows such as the fireworks.  It's super inconsiderate to those around you when their view is blocked because you want to take video of the fireworks.

* When looking for a parade or fireworks watching spot, don't weasel into someone else's spot at the 11th hour.

These stories are legendary among Disney park go-ers and it happens a LOT. You and your family find your parade spot and you've been sitting or standing there for a while (I've seen people at Disneyland getting their spots ready at 2PM for an 8PM parade. Not me, folks - not me. Phew that's commitment!) Then, 5 minutes before the parade starts, a group comes around to fill in the 1/4" spaces around you and pushes their way to the front.

C'mon, now; that's just craziness. Simple kindness should dictate that unless you've put in the time to get your spot, you don't get to strong arm your way into those spots. If you want a prime viewing location - get their early. (Or in the case of some of the parades at Walt Disney World - get a FastPass+. You have a special viewing area AND don't have to get there hours ahead of time to get your spot. Problem solved.)

* But in relation to the above....please don't send one or two people to save spots for 8-10 people. Not cool.

Saving a spot for 1-2 people? Completely kosher. Expecting someone to hold down the fort for the whole group? Yeah, that's an issue.

I understand that sometimes you save a space for someone because they're on a ride, or getting a snack, or in the restroom, and they'll be back to your spot in minutes. But please don't try and save dozens of spots for people who are going to show up minutes before the parade or show starts.

This should go without saying, but the same applies to rides as well. I saw more than one instance at Disneyland earlier this month where 2-3 people would be in line, and then moments before the boarding started on the attraction five or ten people would show up and have to shimmy their way through the line to get to their group. That's just insanity. Not only is it disruptive to try and get past others as they're waiting to get on, it's also super rude. Either line up with your group, or don't line up at all. Easy peasy.

And don't even get me started on people who leave their towels on pool and deck chairs for hours at a time. I could go on all day....

The takeaway from all this? Please be considerate. If we all thought about how our actions affect other park goers, trust me - things would go a LOT more smoothly.

What are some of your theme park pet peeves? Please share below in the comments and on social media!

Inside Out - The New Pixar Classic?

pixarpost.com

This was the opening weekend for Pixar's newest film, Inside Out, and you know that I was in that theater. I couldn't wait to see it - from the early reviews it looked like another hit for the studio that brought us Toy Story, Finding Nemo, and a myriad of other new classics.

I always have high expectations when I see a Pixar film. In my opinion, they are the kings and queens of Hollywood - a studio where story is paramount. Where it's not just about cheap, two second jokes that become insufferable after the 2nd time you hear them (I can only take so many fart jokes.). It's not about pandering to kids (or adults!) or cranking out another movie because it's been a few years and its time. Storytelling is the steam that drives the Pixar locomotive; it's the "something special" that sets them heads and shoulders above the rest.

So what did I think of Inside Out?

You did it again, Pixar. You did it again.

If you're not familiar with the story line, Inside Out takes us inside the head of an 11 year old girl named Riley, as she navigates young adulthood and moving from Minnesota to San Francisco. We get to see her five emotions - Anger, Fear, Disgust, Sadness and Joy. I would call Joy the second protagonist of the film; she in a sense narrates the story, and her mission is to make sure Riley's life is happy and always filled with joyful moments. But as we learn, Joy isn't the only emotion that Riley feels or should feel. Without giving away the story line, you learn how every emotion is important to Riley.

I cannot say enough good things about this film. I'd read so many glowing reviews in the weeks and months before seeing it, I was honestly a bit nervous. What if it doesn't measure up to my already sky-high expectations for a Pixar film? As it turns out, I had nothing to fear (see what I did there?).

I REALLY want to talk specifics of the film that I have been thinking about over and over again in the last 48 or so hours, but I don't want to spoil any of it for you. What I do want to touch on is the idea of core memories. At the beginning of the film, we learn that every day, every moment, an emotion is experienced. All those emotions are stored in Long Term Memory, but there are 5-6 very special memories. Those are called Core Memories. The memories and moments that happen when you're very young, and shape and color every experience in your life. Your relationship with your family, what makes you laugh, what makes you upset, etc. In the last few days I've really reflected on that concept, and what are my Core Memories. What are yours?

People have asked me if Inside Out is a "kids movie". I struggle with that answer, because while I think kids will really enjoy it, it's not your "typical" animated movie. The best way I can describe it is to think of the movie Up, which Pete Doctor also directed in addition to Inside Out. Both are similar in that they're cerebral films - they get you to think and ask questions but in a beautiful way that's still very entertaining. I had the same reaction to Inside Out as I first did when I saw Up. Do you recall that flashback scene (with ZERO dialogue, by the way) with Carl and Ellie, where Carl is remembering their first meeting as children, their marriage, and her passing? I remember watching that scene and thinking (between my ugly-cry tears), holy crap. I'd never seen anything like it from an animated film.

Pixar has changed the game of animation. No longer it a medium that's just for kids, or even geared towards kids. I saw just as many childless adults in Inside Out as I did families.  I had a very similar experience when I first saw Toy Story 3. At the very end of the film, I was trying to deftly wipe away the crocodile tears going down my cheeks and turned to see that each of the 6 other adult women that I was with were all crying too. (Pixar and Kleenex really should partner up - that seems like a missed opportunity.)

The following quote from Nick Schager of the Daily Beast (from his article here) best sums up why I loved Inside Out. Nick writes, "For the past twenty years, Pixar has reigned supreme in the animated realm, in large part because its movies aren't simply witty, or beautifully crafted, or light years more clever than their competition - they also, at their finest, tap into profound questions about what it means to be a child, and what it means to begin becoming an adult. Pixar is a studio interested in creating stores about the most essential, and universal, of human experiences. And in that respect, Inside Out may be its crowning achievement to date."

Couldn't have said it any better, Nick.

Have you seen Inside Out? What are your thoughts?

Have a magical day!