Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Cookies!

I found them!!  I went to Target today and they were right where I saw them.  Good old, reliable Target!  Isn't this box adorable?  The back is cute, too:

It's a little (obvious) matching game.  Anyway, if you can see the small writing in yellow, it says "Just Place & Bake!" and yes, it is that simple!  (You can also see the three other cookie "shapes" on the bottom right: Valentine Mickeys over hearts, the Cinderella shoe I think I mentioned in my last post, and Cars!)

I took them out of the pack:

They actually look like little Stitch faces!  They were so cute and tiny, I felt like I was about to eat Pumpkin Mickey cereal (there's an idea...).  Anyway I took a picture holding it so you could see how small they were:

Haha okay maybe they're not cereal-sized.  Although Honeycombs are rather large, aren't they?

Aww there they are!  I actually had to move some of these to a separate pan because I re-read the box after sliding these puppies into the oven (note to literal readers: I did not slide any puppies into the oven) and realized they should be not one, but two inches apart from each other.  Now, I don't have a built-in ruler app in my brain and I'm too lazy to actually get a ruler out of the drawer right next to me, so I spread them out a little further just to make sure.

This is how they looked coming out of the oven, which is exactly the same except a tiny bit bigger (and I didn't take a picture holding one cuz they were too hot and I could take one right now, but remember that comment I just made about being lazy and the ruler?  Yeah.)

And here they are all festively displayed on a green plate..

Yum!  I'm sure the treats at MNSSHP will be much fancier and tastier, but these are pretty fancy and tasty if I do say so myself!!  Thanks, Pillsbury!

Pete's Silly Sideshow OPENSSS

Oh my goody-goodness... Not only did Storybook Circus' double-Dumbo and Great Goofini rides open in time for my October 22 visit with my Dad, not only did the circus-themed souvenir shop open this past week..... but Pete's Silly Sideshow is now open, too!!  Just in time!  That means we're going to MEET our circus-themed friends in their awesome circus-themed outfits!  YAY!!  Here's the link to the official Disney Parks Blog post on it.  Don't worry, soon(ish) I'll have pictures of my own to share (and you won't have to wade through these white-and-text posts wondering where the colors are)!  Have a magical day!

P.S. I couldn't find the Mickey Halloween cookies at PathMark OR Shop Rite!  The nerve!  Guess I'll have to go to Target tomorrow!

I'm so excited!!

Just stopping by to say how dang excited I am for Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party and the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival...  Every day I've been visiting the MNSSHP and Epcot Festival facebook pages.  They update with new photos all the time and I love it.  I'm just looking for stuff to do in the meantime.  Spoonful, which used to be Disney's Family Fun website, has all these really cute Disney-themed Halloween crafts and treats to make!  I love the Mickey mummy cupcakes and the eyeball cake pops on forks!

I also saw at Target (it's probably also at Shop Rite, etc.) some sugar cookies with pumpkin Mickeys on them!  They're by Pillsbury and oh the link has Cinderella cookies, too!  I might get them tomorrow just to put my dad & me in the Halloween "spirit!"  Haha.  Well I'll be sure to post if I do make them soon!!

Disney and DSW... WDWSW?

Many of us ladies love shoes.  Many of us also happen to love Disney.  So it only seems natural that Disney and DSW have collaborated to make a collection of fancy shoes inspired by Cinderella called "The Glass Slipper Collection."

I was at the mall, trying not to drag my boyfriend into the Disney Store for the thousandth time (because nothing much has changed since yesterday... of course, how would I know?  I didn't go in.)  when we walked by DSW.  Fortunately DSW is a store for all.  Male, female, adult, child... (you figure out who's who) so we walked in.  And I gasped when I saw the big sign with the blonde lady in a big poofy wedding dress and the words "Glass Slipper" written under her.  I thought, I have found my wedding shoes!  (Of course there's no wedding I'm planning for yet, but still, a girl must always be on her toes... no pun intended)  So I was able to get my Disney fix for the day.

Here's a short youtube video on the collaboration.  It reminds me of a cooking competition show when he presents the shoes to whoever is sitting there listening.  Here's the official website, though I must say I saw a pair I really got excited over in the video that didn't make it to the shelves.  It was the white pair with the big white puffball at the toe.  It's just so adorable & reminds me of Tinkerbell.  Of course I've been looking for shoes with a poof at the toe for ages and just when I find one it's not even being made.  The one I like the best of the available shoes is the "Charming Sandal" in light blue.  That one really says "Cinderella" to me!

And I can't believe the video didn't mention this, nor did I see it on the website--there is a "diamond" inlay on the outside of the sole of each shoe!  SO glad I took a picture:

How adorable is that??  I'd call it the "piece de resistance!"  I felt like Becky Brandon (nee Bloomwood) from the Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella (I just finished reading the last book of the series and I'm pretty bummed that there isn't a "next one" I can read yet... sorry, I had to vent about it somewhere).  There's this one part in the books when she's buying shoes that have a tiny fruit at the toe or the buckle and it sounds so cute.  The peach ones have a little peach, the purple would have grape and so on...  My photo doesn't represent it in all its shiny glory, but trust me.  It was special.  Here's the whole shoe I was holding:

It was pretty uncomfortable, of course, because I'm not a Disney Princess and don't spend all my time in platform 3" heels (although, which ones really do?  I feel like the last few have been running around barefoot the whole movie.  At least Rapunzel.  And Pocahontas.  Jasmine wore sensible flats).  I was hoping this collaboration might expand to include all the Disney Princesses, especially Pocahontas, and they can have all kinds of awesome moccasins with a little feather on the bottom of the sole.  Come on, Disney, talk to me.  I have quite a few ideas...

Tokyo Disneyland Part II

Well here is part 2 of my Tokyo Disney blogs!! Last time I covered my trip to Tokyo Disney Sea.  This time I'll be focusing on the Land!  My friend Donald and I spotted each other from far away:

Of course a huge gust of wind came right when our picture was being taken with him:

Here I am with Prince John, sucking my thumb.  (It's a reference to the movie.  Robin Hood, the one with the foxes.  Prince John sucks his thumb and goes, "Mummy!" a few times.  This isn't my normal photo pose.)

We saw the castle as we walked in!

Hooray!

 

We were there for "Easter Wonderland" (like Tokyo Disney Sea's "Spring Carnival") and there were eggs all over the park of characters!  I have at least one picture of an egg later on but here's the big egg centerpiece of the park (I forgot I'd given myself bunny ears):

 

 Here's a cute window display near the entrance:

There was a Monsters, Inc. ride (Ride and Go Seek) that I was super excited about, but the wait was FOUR HOURS and all the Fast Passes were done for the day, so I missed that.  

                            

 I found one of the eggs here:

                                      

At least they have themed souvenir shops for most of the rides!  I found a Monsters, Inc. hardhat.  It matched my dress!

Disney is so great about all the little details, like these on the walls of the shop (you can click them to make them bigger):

They also had Roz's glasses for sale, which I really wanted (with the pearl chain and everything), but ended up not buying.  Now, years later, I have real cat-eye glasses with my prescription :)

Then there were the classic rides, like It's a Small World:

I don't usually take pictures during the "cruise" because it takes away from the first-hand experience.  But this was in Tokyo so I tried to take some memories home :)  This came out a little blurry but it's the best of them:

We didn't ride Dumbo, but here's a cute photo-op next to it:

And Timothy S. Mouse on the top of the ride:

 

Here's Peter Pan's Flight:

And Pinnochio:

They also had Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain.  You could meet Cowboy Goofy, Woody, and Jesse!  The crowds were so big I hardly got to see anyone but I came pretty close!

Here's another egg in front of Splash Mountain :)

And another adorable Disney detail, a scene where I guess Chip and Dale have been:

Here's a really cute snack we had:

An awesome Up scene:

There was this really cute version of the Tiki Room featuring Stitch (in Japan they call him Stitchy, which is so cute) called Aloha E Komo Mai.  Stitch's paw prints were on the ceiling, and there's actually a whole synopsis of the ride on wikipedia (I looked it up so I could remember exactly what it was, and it's really cute).

Anyway, it was an awesome time and I just adored both days.  What a great place to spend with my brothers.  It really was the cutest.  I'd love to go back there!  Notice the eggs with Mickeys on them on this lit-up sign as we exited.  Sigh... that was so great.  Goodbye, Tokyo Disney!

Oh Boy! I'm going to MNSSHP!!!

If you aren't up with the hip lingo, you're probably thinking, "Should I call a doctor?" or, "No!  Don't MNSSHP on my shoes!"  Settle down, friends.  It's only an acronym for Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party (although the acronym is nearly as long-winded to say as the full name itself).

Believe me, I feel spoiled to be going to the wonderful world of Disney twice in one year.  I also feel lucky.  I can't wait!!  It's going to be a special father-daughter trip.  My dad is waaay overdue for a trip to Disney.  And, since we're going in October, we're also attending MNSSHP.  There's a great website that explains what it is, followed by pictures and videos of celebrations from the year(s) past.  There's also a great blog I found, written by a mother of two who takes her kids regularly to the parks.  She's prepared to give us the skinny about MNSSHP 2012 after she attends the first day!

While I try to contain myself, I have to let some of the magic spill out of me.  I painted my nails in this Mickey-inspired design this afternoon:

A little messy around the edges, I know, but what are you gonna do.  (I know, I'm supposed to roll a q-tip in nail polish remover & clean it up, but we don't have q-tips)  Anyway, that'll keep me excited every time I look at my nails for about a week!!  :)  I'm thinking I'll do Disney-inspired nails up until the big trip (and probably after, too!) which I will, of course, post here on my blog.

If you feel inspired to paint your nails Disney, too, here's a video I just watched on how to make Lion King-inspired nails!  (It looks pretty difficult and requires a few tools, but where people use "dotters," I use toothpicks, if that helps!!)

In the meantime, I'll be planning away!  (and maybe posting that Tokyo Disneyland Part II)....

Cinderella's Next Makeover

Looks like Cinderella's fairy godmother has paid her another visit!  Disney has given her a new makeover.  I only noticed this because I work at a bookstore and we recently received a new sign for children's books that has Cinderella on it.  I did a double-take when I saw it, because she now has a side-part and looks more like Barbie.  Oh, Cinderella!  Don't go changin'....

Here's how she generally looked before (although when I was Google image-searching, I found that in the original movie her hair was more light brown/reddish). 

Here's how she looks now:

Her headband no longer connects to her earrings (and she has ears), she has a side-part, and her bun is much more actual-bun than three poofs hanging over the headband.  Of course, that's how I knew her and I let my brain think it was an actual way to style your hair.  She does look much younger (which I guess makes sense since most fairy tale princesses are 14-16--yes, I did take a course in fairy tales in college!)  However there's a small blurb explaining some of this on the website I got this image from.

And now here's the Barbie I was thinking she looks like (the Barbie from the paperback books at my bookstore):

Maybe this isn't the best example because her hair is a little pink here.. But I hope this gives you an idea of what I was thinking (it's the only one I could find where her side-part is more pronounced).

And then, just to throw you off, there's this:

Barbie as Cinderella.  I prove my point.  (I know, not really). 


Anyway I hope this "trial period" (if that's what it is) doesn't last too long and gets feedback from fans.  You don't want to mess with Disney fans.  Remember when Mr. Toad closed in Disney World?  Yeah.  And they want to change Cinderella's entire head.

The places I got these images are:
http://a.dolimg.com/en-US/disneyfans/media/history/movies/cinderella/mov_cinderella_240x240.jpg
http://cousinorville.com/?p=77
http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/i-can-be-a-rock-star-barbie/id419925858?mt=11
http://www.shopping.com/Mattel-Barbie-As-Cinderella-Collector-Edition-Fairy-Tale-Beauty-Who-Lost-Her-Slipper-Doll-1996/info (Really?  Was that the full title of this doll?  "Fairy-Tale Beauty Who Lost Her Slipper" Doll?)