animals | The Angel Forever

Category Archives animals

Disney Nature’s Chimpanzee

Posted on April 22, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

As the mother of two children, I have a hard enough time trying to film my own family from time to time. It is hard for me to imagine trying to make a movie all about animals, nature, and everything in between. Of course, Disney Nature makes this task look relatively easy.

Each year, Disney Nature continues to bring stories of animals to us. This weekend, for Earth Day we get to meet Oscar in the new release Chimpanzee.

If you take your family to meet Oscar during the first week, part of the money will go to help chimpanzees in the wild. I know that we are hoping to take the kids to see this. As a child, I fell in love with chimpanzees thanks to reading books about Jane Goodall. Now, I hope to show my children what this woman has done to help chimpanzees that are endangered. I love that she has helped with this project and supports it.

If you have seen Chimpanzee I would love to know what you thought and how you will work to help Oscar and his family.

It's Me

Disclosure: I received PR information about Chimpanzee. Since we are fans of Disney Nature, I wanted to share this information with my readers. I was not compensated for this post and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
animals Disney Movies real world news

Some Favorite Disney Adventures

Posted on April 2, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Growing up at Disney world and then going there on my honeymoon with TechyDad means that I have a lot of memorable adventures. While in high school, we had the Food and Fun plan that included things like parasailing. Yes, I went parasailing at Walt Disney World. We got onto the boat at The Contemporary Resort and traveled around the Seven Seas Lagoon. While up in the seat next to my brother, we listened to music and could see The Magic Kingdom. I need to find these old photos one day soon.

On our honeymoon, TechyDad and I had another amazing plan that also included extras. We were able to do behind the scenes tours, boat, do a fireworks cruise, and more. This was also the trip that we had our first Cirque du Soleill adventure. La Nouba was new in Downtown Disney and we made sure to snag tickets to see the show.

Of course, last year while at Disney Social Media Moms I was able to go on an even bigger Disney inspired adventure. I signed up for the African Trek at The Animal Kingdom.

This tour takes you behind the scenes where you can see the animals even closer, cross over rope bridges, and eat at a beautiful Boma. Here is the group of bloggers that I went on the trek with.

Once we were set up with equipment, it was time to see some amazing animals, cross some bridges, face fears, and live out a magical dream.

One of the last items on the trek is time to sit, relax, have a meal, and watch the animals on the gorgeous Boma.

Of course, this also meant spending some time with some old friends and getting to know new ones.

Before we knew it, the time was up and we were heading back to get our things and go back to our families. Of course, we stopped for one last group photo.

What Disney adventure have you been on that was beyond magical? Please share below or share your link with me to read.

For more on my Wild African Trek adventure, check out these posts:

P.S. A huge thank you to Mariana from The Domestic Buzz for creating this magical Blog Hop! The link will be within this post the day after it is published.

Disclosure: Although we paid for our own trip to Disney World, we were given an incredible deal thanks to Disney. Also note that Disney never asked us to blog about this event. As a long time Disney fan, it is my pleasure to share my experiences from the event.

Categories:
animals Blog Hop Blogging Conference bloggy friends Disney DisneySMMoms looking back me moments photos travel vacation

Celebrating Platypus Day

Posted on March 4, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Did you know that yesterday was Platypus Day? Over the last few weeks, we had heard that Radio Disney was going to be at the Hannaford Kidz Expo held at the Empire State Plaza.

Since Saturday was Platypus Day, they were focusing their area of the Expo with Phineas and Ferb. To get into the spirit, all three of the boys wore one of their Perry shirts to unite with Agent P. The people at Radio Disney loved this and commented to everyone, including TechyDad. The kids had fun searching for the clues that were hidden for an Agent P Scavenger Hunt. This was one of the signs hidden at the event.

When we got home, I made sure to get a photo of the boys with their Agent P masks and the Phineas and Ferb shirts that they wore in honor of Platypus Day.

Although very crowded, it was a lot of fun. More about the Kidz Expo coming soon from TechyDad when he shares JSL checking out friends from Reptile Adventure. NHL and I had seen them over the summer when JSL did not want to go. I do believe this may have been a favorite for the little kiddo.

Did you do anything special for Platypus Day? Would love to hear all about it, or about your adventure at Kidz Expo if you were there.

It's Me

Categories:
animals Disney fun jsl local event nhl photos TechyDad weekend

Happy 8th Birthday NHL

Posted on August 17, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL,

I can not believe that you are already eight years old. It seems like yesterday that Daddy and I were in the store picking out your crib. Then, we brought you home and suddenly you grew up before our eyes.

So much has happened in the last year. Some were amazing, while others ones I wish we could have shielded you from. No matter what, you will learn and grow and have survived these bumps in the road of life.

Now let’s take a walk down memory lane at the last year – NHL at 7.

After your last birthday, you really started to enjoy using the Nintendo Wii, and, with time, the DS. Daddy and I allowed you to try your new games and often your little brother watched on in amazement. Of course, now he’s starting to get some of the Wii games thanks to you helping him. (August 2010)

Second grade, well it proved to be a challenging year. Academically, there was no issues for you. Sad to say, it will probably be the year we hope to forget. Rather than dwell on the drama that included switching schools, let’s recall the happy times. Just after the year started, we went up to the lake for a big extended family weekend. You were so thrilled to drive the boat with Uncle M. (September 2010)

Much of October was filled with preparing for Halloween. You were thrilled to be Luigi again since your love of all things Super Mario was really getting started. (October 2010)

Thanksgiving this year was even more special thanks to Uncle I, Aunt M, and cousins SG and BA coming. This meant celebrating Chanukah a little earlier. I think your favorite part was often reading to the little kids. I loved one of your gifts – your new Thing 1 shirt. You may not remember this, but when JSL was born Daddy and I used to call both of you by those names. (November 2010)

December found us keeping busy with Chanukah, snow, and a fun outing. We all went to see Toy Story 3 on Ice. You loved the entire show and could not wait to see Lotso. It was a magical family outing that we all needed with special time together. (December 2010)

Snow, snow, and more snow greeted us in January. There were several days that school was canceled. This was also the time that I gave you my old laptop to use. You adored playing math games and more on it. I think your favorite snow day was the one where we never got our of our pajamas and stayed warm playing games. (January 2011)

February brought us even more snow and a lot of ice. At a certain point, even you were getting sick of it. Of course, since you were 7, you liked to play outside, build, and try to keep warm. By the end of the month, we were all dreaming of our upcoming trip to Florida. (February 2011)

The magical month of March arrived just in time for a much needed escape from life here in NY. We were lucky enough to be able to go to the second Disney Social Media Moms Celebration. You certainly showed that you are a NDK (Neurotic Disney Kid) and enjoyed every minute wanting to know when we could go back again. Seeing the joy in your face and the stress melt away was beyond magical. I think the highlight for you was meeting Beast since you had been begging for that moment for months. (March 2011)

The snow finally melted away and some warmer weather came to stay. You adored the times when we could head to the park and run around without a worry in the world. Of course, it also allowed you time to be silly in front of the camera. (April 2011)

Much of May was spent getting used to new things. A new school, your little brother turning four, and heading to the circus. You were fascinated with the circus clowns, animals, and acts in general. May was definitely a month where we turned things around and started to see the light at the end of the second grade tunnel. (May 2011)

Lots of things were going on in June. The end of the month officially made you a third grader. Much to our surprise, you were so sad to see things end at your new school. It made my heart so happy that you liked the new place where you learned so much in a short time. We also found a new favorite ice cream location. Yes, we met Nana and Papa there for lunch a few times and we were ok with that. (June 2011)

This summer, we have kept busy going to crafting events. You really do enjoy trying new crafts, as well as learning new things at the library’s passport program. Different countries, lizards, t-shirt making, and more thanks to our travels. Of course, the summer would not be complete without time under the water at the fun new park we found.

Suddenly, it is August again and the end of being a seven year old. You now love chapter books, are into Harry Potter (with a crush on Hermione), and are determined to finish and win DS games. You are a big helper, especially when it comes to your littlest cousin. You loved spending your birthday party weekend helping him around the park and other locations. (August 2011)

With tears in my eyes, I honestly find it hard to believe that you are already eight. You start third grade in a few short weeks. Getting to really watch you and spend time being creative with you this summer has taught me so much. I look forward to watching you grow, learn even more, and become the person you want to be. With some help, I hope that Daddy and I can make it more stress free and fun this year. I truly hope that your dreams and wishes come true and you have an amazing year – you deserve it!

Love,

Mommy

Categories:
animals arts and crafts birthday brothers cousins DisneySMMoms family food glorious food fun looking back nhl photos play time school summer yummy

Birthday Cupcakes

Posted on August 12, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

It’s true. Several years ago, I decided to start making cakes for the boys instead of buying expensive ones from a bakery. Some of this decision was to make matters easier, at least I try to tell myself that. Another factor was the need for an egg free cake since my niece is severely allergic to eggs. The egg free requirement has pushed me to making cupcakes since cakes with the “fake eggs” are too moist and fall apart. Check out what happened to NHL’s special lemon cake that he wanted last August (oy):

Thanks to the cake failing miserably at the last minute, an emergency run to the store was needed. The funny thing was that people devoured the cake mess. So I am now insisting on cupcakes that stay put in their paper boundaries until we can use real eggs. Truth be told, cupcakes are fun to make. Of course, after decorating 10 – it gets a bit tedious when you have other items to prepare for a party. The last request in May was from JSL. He wanted a Jake and the Neverland Pirates Party. The cupcakes that resulted were here:

I have learned that I LOVE my Wilton icing decorator. With one little step, my cupcakes get a boost and look more professional. When we asked NHL what theme he wanted for his birthday this year, I was a bit anxious. Would we be able to find items and how would I be able to carry it into the cupcakes.

I lucked out big time. NHL wanted something with animals, specifically lions. Thanks to his love for the safari at Disney’s Animal Kingdom – the idea was born. Earlier this week we had all of our supplies and decided to do a test batch of the lion cupcakes that I wanted to make for this weekend.

More to come about the lion cupcakes soon. I took a bunch of photos during the experiment and more will be coming after the weekend with the new tools I bought to make it even better. A big thank you to Amanda from The Cupcake Blog for having her amazing resource guide for all things cupcakes. Love the inspiration that keeps the fun going. Oh and my little lion up there, it was featured the other day since I shared it with Amanda on Twitter.

One more thing before I get to the Aloha Friday question:

Happy Birthday Dad!!!!!

So, my question to you this week:

If you could design a dream cupcake, what flavors would you incorporate and what would you decorate it with?

____________________________________________________________________________

Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.