fun | The Angel Forever

Category Archives fun

Personalized Princess Time at Disney

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

Growing up, people would always ask my parents why we would go time after time to Walt Disney World. I never really understood why people would ask these questions. The reason: it was a place where our entire family could enjoy our time together. We were able to leave the real world behind, be carefree, and see/experience something new no matter how familiar we were with the parks.

As an adult, I get it. I now understand the magic of a Disney vacation on a different level. Before we go, I have everything planned. We have our entertainment built in, our resort has many options to offer, and even meals are booked and with the meal plan only tips need to be paid. By the time we arrive in Orlando, we have paid for everything except some souvenirs and ready to enjoy our time there.

Back in March, when we were planning some dining reservations I told TechyDad that I had a request. In all of my visits to Walt Disney World, I had never eaten with the princesses. Yes, this mother of two boys wanted to see Belle, Ariel, Arora, and other important ladies in Disney history. TechyDad was not entirely sure that it was the best thing to do with two boys, but I insisted. NHL and JSL were young enough to appreciate the experience without complaints about mostly girls in their princess gear being there.

We were able to snag some lunch reservations to Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Epcot. We had a magical experience. We had our photo taken with Belle before we were seated. Then, each of the princesses came around to meet and greet every table. What impressed me the most was how the characters interacted with the boys. Check out how Ariel noticed something in the autograph book and talked about pirates.

A magical moment that we captured and can show back to the boys when they are older. Of course, we can also show JSL the goofy smile that he was sporting most of the trip when it was time for photos.

While we were waiting for our dessert, I pulled out the video camera and asked NHL what he thought of the experience. I figured it would be interesting to see what a seven year old boy, with no sisters, had to say about dining with Disney Princesses. This is what he had to say in the very distracted environment.

I do believe that we made the right choice going to this restaurant on our March vacation. I know it was a magical memory that will live with us for many years to come.

If you have any magical Disney moments to share, I would love to hear them. As always, if you have any questions about Disney – just ask away.

Categories:
decisions Disney food glorious food fun interesting jsl looking back milestone nhl photos TechyDad travel vacation video yummy

Sukkah Decorating Time

Posted on October 14, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Yesterday, I mentioned that my family will be celebrating Sukkot on Thursday and Friday this week. Before the holiday, a lot of families work together to build a sukkah for their own homes. We do not have a sukkah, but there are plenty around for us to visit.

Check out the little sukkah that JSL’s classmates made in their own room the other day. The weird smile is courtesy of a cold just in time for the holidays.

Then, JSL showed me the craft that they had made. The kids each made a teeny tiny sukkah with Play-Doh decorations to bring home. This was SO cute and something I had never seen before.

On the way out, we were told to head out to the big sukkah outside. In there, JSL would be able to show me the decoration that he made for the community sukkah. So we walked outside into the sun and explored the sukkah.

We wandered around looking at what each of the classes made. Then we found the group from his room. Here is JSL’s creation for the Sukkah.

So my question for this week is inspired by the holiday of Sukkot:

Have you ever been to a Sukkah before and how was it decorated? If you have not, how would you help with the decorating fun if you went to one?

Real Steel prize pack

Star Wars Cereal and $25 gift card pack

Girl Who Never Made Mistakes

____________________________________________________________________________

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.

Aloha #173

Categories:
Aloha Friday fun holidays jsl photos school

Star Wars Fans Unite With Cereal – Giveaway

Posted on October 6, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Growing up, I remember watching Star Wars and asking my mother to help me put my hair up like Princess Leia. For the record, it did not work too well. As I got older, I loved visiting the world of Star Wars at Disney Hollywood Studios.

Just before a recent trip to Disney, TechyDad and I decided to introduce NHL to Star Wars. He quickly fell in love with R2D2 and especially C3PO. Yes, we had a geek in training. It’s no surprise that when I bribed him to go on Space Mountain, I told him he could pick out any item within reason for going. Check out what the little Star Wars fan selected.

MyBlogSpark recently told us about a new Star Wars campaign that General Mills cereals and Walmart are doing to commemorate the release of Star Wars the Complete Saga on Blu-ray.

The DVD collection released on September 16th brings all six Episodes of the Star Wars saga together for the first time on Blu-ray. There are over 40 hours of special features, which include new content that was specially created for this release. I have a feeling my family may be adding this to our Chanukah list.

In honor of the release, General Mills Big G cereals have a limited edition Star Wars Good versus evil image on their packaging. These specially marked boxes can be found on Honey Nut Cheerios, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Lucky Charms. When you collect all three, it will create a panoramic poster that includes Darth Vadar, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia, and many more.

Giveaway:

To celebrate the release of these special boxes and the DVD collection, MyBlogSpark has allowed me to give a prize pack to one lucky reader. The prize pack will include:

One box each of Honey Nut Cheerios, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Lucky Charms to form your own Star Wars panoramic poster.
$25 Walmart gift card

Rules for Giveaway:

MAIN RULE – Which Star Wars move moment and/or character is your favorite and why?

The following Bonus Entries may also be done. Please be sure to leave separate comments for each that you complete below to make sure you get the right number of entries.

1 Bonus Entry – Follow TheAngelForever on Twitter
1 Bonus Entry – Tweet the following about the giveaway (May be done three times a day): Enter to #win a Star Wars cereal and giftcard pack from @TheAngelForever and #MyBlogSpark http://bit.ly/omJyzk #Giveaway
2 Bonus Entries – Stop by The Angel Forever on Facebook to say hello and leave me a comment on a status message. Let me know you have done so here.
1 Bonus Entry – Subscribe to my RSS feed (or let me know if you already are) in a separate comment.
1 Bonus Entry – Leave a comment on any of my non-giveaway posts from the month of September/October. Leave a comment here to let me know which one. This Bonus entry may be done twice per day.
3 Bonus Entries – Add my blog button to your website and/or add me to your blogroll. Be sure to leave a link with the location.
1 Bonus Entry – Head over to TechyDad’s blog and say hello to him. Let me know where you posted a comment. May be done once a day.

To enter, please follow the rules above within the comment section. Contest starts today October 6, 2011 and ends at 10:59 EST on October 20, 2011. You do not have to be a blogger to enter, but must leave a valid e-mail address for me to contact you for mailing address once the giveaway is over. I will select the winner using random.org and contact you via e-mail. You will have 48 hours to claim the prize. If there is no response, another winner will be selected. Open to U.S. residents only.

Disclosure: I wrote this review as part of a MyBlogSpark campaign for General Mills. My family received the complimentary prize back and another will be provided to a winner of the giveaway. All opinions are my own and no other compensation has been given.

Categories:
food glorious food fun giveaway

Goodies For Our Learn, Create, and Share Party

Posted on October 3, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Imagine a box arrives at your house for an amazing event and you have to hide it from your children. Yes, that was me for the past week or so. The other day, I walked outside and a package had arrived. I managed to divert their attention away and brought the boys to school. When I got home, I opened up the box.

Yes, these were the items sent to me for hosting the “Learn, Create & Share” Party from LeapFrog. As an educator, I love toys that actively engage kids in learning – especially literacy skills. On Sunday, we finally opened up all of the items to check them out. We wanted to make sure they were ready for the party that I am planning. Here is JSL to introduce you to the first item. Warning: 4 year old boys know how to scream when excited!

The poor kid had so much excited energy, he could hardly wait while TechyDad worked on opening the package and getting everything ready.

To keep JSL busy while TechyDad worked on getting everything ready, we made another video. Here is JSL showing the other items that arrived thanks to LeapFrog.

It took a little while, but eventually the LeapPad was open and all three of the boys crowded onto the couch to check it out (I will play once they are in bed). They kept looking, checking, exploring, and trying the apps that were on the LeapPad.

Do you have a LeapPad? If you do, I would love to know what you think or any specific items that I should make sure to try with my boys. So far they have found a lot, but there is just so much more. I have a feeling this will be a hot toy this coming holiday season, so if you have any questions – just let me know in the comments.

More coming soon on the items, including video reactions of trying everything out. Now, the planning may commence for our “Learn, Create, & Share” Party.

Disclosure: As a long time LeapFrog supporter, I applied and was selected by Mom Select and LeapFrog to host a “Learn, Create, & Share” party. They provided me with all of the items shown above. The opinions are all mine and no other compensation was received. More coming soon about the party soon!

Categories:
Educational fun jsl nhl photos Product review Techy Kid Time TechyDad video

Disney Store Dreaming

Posted on October 1, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL & JSL,

Once upon a time, in a galaxy within our reach – there was a Disney Store at our local mall. Actually, before the two of you were born, we had two of them. Then they closed one to centralize everything. Just around the time JSL was born, the remaining one closed its doors for the last time. It was a place that we often went to. We were able to be with Disney and have a fun time. Now, the closest store is several hours away.

A week ago, Shannan and I went to to the Disney Store in NYC on one of our breaks during the SheStreams Conference. To say that I was in heaven would be an understatement.

There was so much to look at in every corner of the two levels of the store. The Phineas and Ferb area immediately got me to check everything out. I now wish I had bought you both something.

There were endless amounts of the Disney Princess items. Those areas of the store were gorgeous, but my attention went to places like the gigantic Toy Story section. So many possibilities that my head was just spinning.

I joked to Shannan that the two of you would not have known where to go next. I think the Marvel area would have kept you there for a while. Lots of Spiderman, Ironman, Captain America, Hulk, and friends. I will say, I am sad that I didn’t get you each one of these:

Back on the first floor, I found what I was looking for. There was a giant display of Vinylmations. I knew this was what I was going to bring both of you and Daddy. I bought each of you a Lion King box to open at home. Then, I saw the NYC Cab series that are only available in this store. I picked one of those tins for Daddy. Then, for the heck of it, I grabbed a Muppet Series 2 box.

Oh, I also stopped myself from picking up one of these for each of you:’

The reason I stopped, I want to head to NYC on a train with all of you for a fun day that includes a stop at the Disney Store.

When I got home and started to unpack, I had the bag from the Disney Store ready to go. The two of you were thrilled with the new Lion King packages. I do not think you were aware that they existed. Daddy was very happy with the two he got as well.

So now we just have to figure out a time to take the train to the city for a fun day together. There are a ton of places that we HAVE to go to and the Disney Store is just the first on a long list. Now if only we would get our Disney Store back here.

Love,

Mommy

__________________

If you want to participate in Dear Kid Saturday, head on over to Cutest Kid Ever by clicking on the button below.