Disney Archives - MomStart

10 Reasons to Visit Disneyland Now

July 26, 2017 by Momstart Leave a Comment

I’ve been to Disneyland quite a bit the past few months and have written about the number one reason to visit Disneyland twice now, Summer of Heroes. But, Summer of Heroes and the new Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout ride are not the only reasons to go to Disneyland right now. We have that top ten reasons to visit Disneyland and California Adventures listed here.

10 Reasons to Visit Disneyland:

1. Summer of Heroes: includes the Avengers Training Initiative, one of 10 epic moments you’ll experience this summer! Then, celebrate your training at the “Guardians of the Galaxy Awesome Dance Off” with Peter Quill and Gamora. You can meet all the heroes from the Avengers face to face and eat some really great Marvel themed food. I recommend doing Heroes of Summer first because sometimes on busy days they run out of themed food.

2. Return of Fantasmic! I wrote all about what I thought about Fantasmic! or what I saw of it last week from my D23Expo Experience. Disneyland provided some footage from the first show

3. The Return of the Electric Parade: The Electric Parade is my husband’s favorite parade at Disneyland. He knows the music by heart and just loves seeing all the lights parade down main street.

photo credit: Disneyland

4. The Fireworks Display: The fireworks display at Disneyland and at Disney World is so immersive. They project lights onto all the buildings, have Walt speak, and amazing music from different movies and themed rides playing while the fireworks dance in the sky.

5. World of Color: If you have not taken the time to see World of Color you are missing out. World of Color is in California Adventures and visually moves through Disney films in a fantastic way displaying on water and fire.

Here is a preview of what you would see at World of Color:

6. Return of the Disneyland Train: I have missed the train. The train is a great way to get from one part of the park to the other, and I believe they made some improvements to what you see while you are on the train. There was one section that was

7. Disney Junior Shows: Disney Junior Dance Party!”: Debuting Friday, May 26, this fun concert experience invites adults and kids to dance and sing along to the music. Popular Disney Junior characters from Disney Junior TV shows “Doc McStuffins,” “Sofia the First” and “The Lion Guard” are joined by Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse from the new series “Mickey and the Roadster Racers.”

8. A revamp to Tom Sawyer Island with a better Pirate’s Lair: My kids love going to play over at the Prate’s Lair.

9. Rivers of America attractions. The attraction is better than ever as you have more things to look at while you are on the ride.

10. Possibly sneak a peek at Star Wars Land The Galaxy’s Edge. There are certain locations at Disneyland that are high enough you can just barely get a glance or two at how The Galaxy’s Edge is coming along. You’ll have to let me know if you get a peek of the Millennium Falcon.

A Photo Tour of Summer of Heroes Food

June 20, 2017 by Momstart 3 Comments

Like all Super Heroes, you need the right fuel and training to make it through the day and the Summer of Heroes has everything you needs.

Photo credit Disneyland

Summer of Heroes Food Options:

As part of the Summer of Heroes celebration at Disney California Adventure Park, guests will find Super Hero-inspired food and beverages at six different locations in the Hollywood Land area of the park, including Schmoozies, Award Wieners and Market Place.

New locations include the Cosmic Canteen and Knowhere Eats. Dishes and drinks in lively colors of green, purple, red, blue and orange reflect the bold personalities of some favorite Super Heroes. One of the fun new desserts is inspired by baby Groot. The Angry Little Pudding Cup features chocolate pudding with crumbled chocolate sandwich cookie, whipped cream and funnel cake fries.

Guests who enjoy the Mickey-shaped sourdough bread available in Disney California Adventure will want to check out the fun, new Groot-shaped breads, in sourdough and jalapeno-cheddar flavors.

The Most Dangerous Tacos in the Galaxy, a must-try, are inspired by the fiery personality of Gamora, featuring barbacoa, green onion slaw and habanero salsa. In addition, guests can try the Savory Strength Falafel Pita, Super Size Subs,

Space Outpost Tacos, Gamma-Sized Donuts and Bifrosties (shave ice with fun themed flavors).

They have some great drink options too. From a wine flight, a beer flight, to spiked Lemonade.

with fun blinking lights

To some non-alcoholic beverages too.

And sweets like this amazing Spiderman Doughnut

To use all the energy you made with the amazing food options be sure to find all the fun Avengers in the park…

Train and perfect your skills with Black Widow and Hawkeye at the Avengers Training Initiative, one of 10 epic moments you’ll experience this summer!

Then, celebrate your training at the “Guardians of the Galaxy Awesome Dance Off” with Peter Quill and Gamora.

How To Ride Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout Twice & A Photo Tour

June 20, 2017 by Momstart Leave a Comment

We’re so excited to introduce you to the new attraction, Guardians of the Galaxy — Mission: BREAKOUT! and give you advice on how to ride Guardians of the Galaxy — Mission: BREAKOUT Twice on one day. Finally, I got to ride the ride! I got to ride it twice, it was a fight to ride it twice but I got to ride it twice. It was AWESOME both times.

Now, word to the wise, if you want to ride this ride you should split your group up. One of you needs to go directly, California Adventures,

then to the ride Mission Breakout, the other one needs to go to the fast pass line for Mission breakout and (yes it could possibly be wrapped around blocks by the time you get to it) with both of your Disneyland park passes. The Fast Pass. Both lines get LONG fast. If your friend that goes to the fast pass line is able to get back in line with you to ride the ride that’s once. Then you have fast passes for later in the day and you’ll get to ride the ride twice.

Here are a few pictures taken from inside the fast pass line of Guardians of The Galaxy Mission Breakout. Like how happy I was after I rode the ride.

And this is while I was on the ride

First let’s just take a look at the ride itself, it’s beautiful in the sunlight.

As soon as you enter the gates there is a statue of the collector I believe as it is his place in the line.

Then his many collections

The collector has a lot of things.

And last but not least, The Guardians of The Galaxy are currently in his collection…

Also new is with Summer of Heroes is the new “Disney Junior Dance Party!” And a lot of great food that will be in our next blog post.

A Walk Through Walt Disney’s Office

May 24, 2017 by Momstart Leave a Comment

Walt Disney had such a creative and innovative mind. Such a person needed his own space and he had it. We had the opportunity to check out what his space looked like years ago when he was alive and making movies.

It looks a little like I remember from ABC’s “A Wonderful World of Disney” or “Walt Disney Presents”. I think both of those were shows I used to watch. Oh and a fun tidbit, his brother’s office was VERY far away from his. Sometimes, they needed some space. Other than that TV show, how do we know what his office looked like?

How Do We Know What Walt Disney’s Office Looked Like

Disney archives keeps a little bit of everything so that history is accurately remembered. This includes what Walt Disney’s office looked like. This past week, I had the opportunity to walk inside Walt Disney’s office on the Disney lot in Burbank California.

What Walt Disney’s Office looked like

He had an office where he would write, he had an office where he would formally meet with people, and then he also had an office where he would be creative.

Here is a walk through Walt Disney’s Office in photos…

A Walk Through Walt’s Office

VIEW SLIDE SHOW

DOWNLOAD ALL

I find Walt Disney to be a very inspiring man. I’ve been lucky enough to visit many of his personal locations. I’ve been to the house Walt Disney lived in for many years. I’ve also visited the Walt Disney Family Museum. Of course I’ve also been to Walt Disney world and to Disneyland on many occasions. His dreams never seem to have died.

The first four photos in this blog post are courtesy of Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment. The rest of the photos I took myself on my tour of Walt Disney’s Office.

Mickey and The Roadster Racers and Minnie’s Happy Helpers Toys #MickeyRacers

March 21, 2017 by Momstart 1 Comment

We received samples from our fantastic friends and Disney. We’re so happy to be able to use these toys and donate them to less fortunate kids. In honor to do that we are opening them as little as possible. Zoe has helped me take photos of what some of these toys include like the Minnie’s Happy Helpers toys.

Includes plush figara figure, play treat box, pop in charms
Features handle that pulls up
Ages 3+ and up

This one was her favorite set and she really wanted to make sure that you get to see all the pieces that are included in it.

We also received…Disney Junior Mickey and the Roadster Racers Pit Crew Toolbox.

Join Mickey Mouse’s pit crew with the Roadster Racers Toolbox from Disney Junior’s new hit show, Mickey and the Roadster Racers! This awesome racer themed tool box is designed to look just like the one Mickey uses in the show! The set comes with 23 tools including a mallet, flat head screwdriver, 2 wrenches, play metal plates, screws, nuts and nails. The tool box even comes with a working peg board so little racers can put their tools into action! The perfect gift set for every Roadster fan!

Tool box inspired by Disney Junior’s Mickey and the Roadster Racers
Features a working peg board so little racers can put their tools into action
Set comes with 23 fun tools including: a mallet, flat head screwdriver, 2 wrenches, play metal plates, screws, nuts, nails and more
Ages 3 and up

Genuine, Original, Authentic Disney Store
Playset includes Minnie figure, Happy Helpers Van, desk, chair, laptop computer, table, and mirror
Van converts into mobile headquarters with flip-down stairs
Spin the bow on top of her super computer to choose Minnie’s next exciting mission
Poseable Minnie figure

Minnie’s Happy Helpers Van is a real-rolling vehicle that folds out into a full playset. It has everything your child needs to pretend to be on a Minnie’s Happy Helpers adventure, just like on the Disney Junior show! Roll the van, and when your child is ready for an adventure they can flip up the roof, flip down the stairs, and transform the van into Minnie’s mobile headquarters. As your child spins the bow on top of Minnie’s super computer, they get to help Minnie choose her next exciting mission. This playset is a complete Minnie’s Happy Helpers office and comes with a desk, chair, laptop computer, and of course a mirror so Minnie can make sure she looks fabulous before going on her latest adventure. Your child can then close up the van, store everything inside, and bend the poseable Minnie figure at the waist to sit her in the driver’s seat. Now your child and Minnie are ready to roll on to their next adventure! There’s no job too big or too small for Minnie’s Happy Helpers!

Fisher-Price – Disney Mickey and the Roadster Racers – Speed n’ Spill Raceway

Speed N’ Spill Raceway is a Mickey and the Roadster Racers track set that features a launcher that can race two cars. Place one or two cars at the starting line, lift the launch ramp into start position, and push down on each handy hand one at a time to release the cars separately down the track. Release one of the cars and hit a slippery oil slick as it spins off the road. As the car swerves off the track it triggers a ramp that pops up, allowing the next car to jump over the oil spill and cross through the finish line to win the race, setting off a spinning checkered flag. Your child can collect other Mickey and the Roadster Racers track sets that can join together to the Speed N’ Spill Raceway with their Mickey Mouse-shaped track connectors. Track sets work with all Roadster Racers die-cast vehicles. Additional cars and track sets sold separately and subject to availability.

Track set with dual launcher
Race 2 vehicles down the track
Hit the oil slick and spin off course
Jump over the oil spill and race to victory
Finish-line flag spins
It’s race day and Mickey and the Roadster Racers are ready for anything as they prepare to battle it out in a head to head competition. They’re getting ready to zoom down the track, but in this race the finish is going to be hard to predict. Will they be flying to victory or end up in an oily mess? The first car races down the ramp and takes the lead, but look out – there’s an oil spill in the road! As the first driver swerves off the track to avoid the mess, the second car goes flying over the oil slick and races to victory, past the checkered flag. There’s always time for one more race as your child gives it another go down the Speed N’ Spill Raceway!

When my kids were younger they LOVED this show. Now that they are older they don’t watch quite as much Disney Junior, but I did get to watch a few episodes and Mickey and the Roadster Racers are quite adorable. These toys and the Mickey and the Roadster Racers DVD can be found on Amazon.com and ToysRUs.com.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens Behind the Scenes With BB-8

April 11, 2016 by Momstart Leave a Comment

I was lucky enough to attend the Press Junket for Star Wars: The Force Awakens and interview so many talented people involved. J. J. Abrams, Daisy Ridley and John Boyega all talked about how real BB-8 was to all of them. He was in most of the film and when he wasn’t on set he was missed. So I think it’s great that some of the extras on the Star Wars: The Force Awakens home release include BB-8. Which by the way you can get Star Wars: The Force Awakens on Blu-Ray, DVD, and digital download right now! If you’re like me you had it on pre-order long ago!

Want a little more BB-8 in your life? We’ve got a special bonus clip and concept art showing the design process behind creating the world’s new favorite droid! This little celebrity has been very busy on screen as well as off! Take a look at a special visit he made to NASA’s JPL laboratories where he interacted with the best and brightest droids from this galaxy as well as celebrating the inaugural international flight of Japan’s ANA BB-8 Jet!

BB-8 at NASA’s JPL

Secrets of The Force Awakens – Building BB-8 Bonus Clip

BB-8 Concept Art

First Look: The Jungle Book Interviews & Featurettes #JungleBookEvent

March 28, 2016 by Momstart Leave a Comment

There is a lot of excitement around Disney’s new movie The Jungle Book. I know that my family is really excited to see it.

So we’re excited to share a first look at The Jungle Book with you. So check out two new clips and a new featurette with never-before-seen interviews from the cast and filmmakers including Jon Favreau, Bill Murray, Lupita Nyong’o, Idris Elba, Sir Ben Kingsley and Scarlett Johansson below from Disney’s upcoming live action THE JUNGLE BOOK!

“The Legacy” Featurette

“Hibernation” Film Clip

“Mowgli Leaves The Pack” Film Clip

Follow Along Socially and don’t miss anything!!!!

Like THE JUNGLE BOOK on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DisneyJungleBook

Follow THE JUNGLE BOOK on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheJungleBook

Follow THE JUNGLE BOOK on Instagram: https://instagram.com/disneythejunglebook

Follow THE JUNGLE BOOK on Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/disneystudios/the-jungle-book/

Follow THE JUNGLE BOOK on Google+: https://plus.google.com/112416455929607370682/posts

Visit Walt Disney Pictures on Tumblr: http://disneystudios.tumblr.com/

Follow Walt Disney Pictures on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/DisneyMovieTrailers

Visit the official THE JUNGLE BOOK website here: http://movies.disney.com/the-jungle-book-2016

THE JUNGLE BOOK opens in theatres everywhere in 3D, RealD 3D, and IMAX 3D on April 15th!

A First Visit to Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom

March 11, 2016 by Momstart Leave a Comment

Now, this is my second time to go down to Walt Disney World but it was my very first time to stop foot in Magic Kingdom and I felt like a little girl full of excitement walking into the park. When you first walk in it’s much like Disneyland in that you go through the ticketing area to the front lawn area, then when you walk around you see it. You see that amazing beautiful castle.

Now, I have to remind you that I was on this trip as part of the new movie Zootopia that is now in theaters, and my dear friend Judy Hopps had to pay homage to the creator…Walt Disney himself with a selfie.

She also wants to remind you how funny her movie is and that you can go see it this weekend, (we’re going next weekend as a birthday present to my son).

Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom is amazing. I really truly loved it and if an adult ever tells you there is nothing there to do for adults please don’t believe them. You have to try it out yourself…starting with the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.

The way this ride was created was so creative. You get on it and it’s a roller coaster but the individual cars sway back and fourth making the ride even smoother. It was so much fun.

We also rode the Jungle Cruise, the Haunted Mansion, Pirates, Big Thunder Mountain, The Magic Carpets of Aladdin, THe Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh, Peter Pan’s Flight and Splash Mountain. My favorite ride was the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, but I also enjoyed everything about the park.

Walt Disney World is much more spacious than Disneyland. All the rides are spaced out and there is so much detail in the sidewalk and all of the surroundings it’s quite amazing. The food was also amazing at this park. We ended up eating at Aloha Isle to get a Dole Whip (my first and it was really really good). Then we had lunch at Columbia Harbour House. I’m on a diet so I tried really hard to eat healthy while I was there and at Columbia House it tasted so good. I had a salad that had three servings of veggies in it. It was so so good. All the food there looked good.

While we were there it started raining and the park cleared out. The rain lasted less than 10 minutes and then the park was empty but we still had a great deal of fun. Thanks for all the fun Disney….

What You Must See and Do in Hollywood Studios

March 9, 2016 by Momstart Leave a Comment

At Walt Disney World, Hollywood Studios is the place to find the Force. I had some time in a few of the parks at Walt Disney World and Hollywood Studios was one of them. I’ve spent some time in Hollywood Studios before because it has two of my favorite roller coasters there. The Hollywood Tower of Terror and Rockin Rollercoaster. Both of which I love to ride over and over again.

This time, I spent time getting to know the park a little better and seeing that there are other rides to ride. I rode Toy Story Midway Mania and The Great Movie Ride which they have updated a little bit with plans to update it even more.

I didn’t have time for any of the shows but there are some really fun ones like the Frozen Sing a long and The Indianna Jones Stunt Spectacular. I did have time to watch The Path of a Jedi which I really liked and spent some time exploring the Star Wars exhibit.

You have to stay for the Star Wars Fireworks Display and dessert party, which is only going to get better as the summer goes on. I saw the Fireworks show and participated in the dessert party (which is an extra cost but unlimited desserts and alcohol so worth it) and it was AMAZING. the music was so dramatic and the fireworks looked like death stars and spaceships fighting it out. This summer you’ll see even more projections as the fireworks display goes on. After seeing what they did at Disneyland with their projections I can only imagine how amazing it will be this summer.

The next generation of Star Wars-themed fireworks shows, “Star Wars: A Galactic Spectacular,” will premiere this summer with new themed fireworks, lasers, special effects and video projections of characters and scenes from the complete saga, all set to the iconic score of the film series.

The live stage show “Star Wars: A Galaxy Far, Far Away” will debut April 4, celebrating iconic moments from the Star Wars saga with live vignettes featuring popular characters such as BB-8, Kylo Ren, Chewbacca, Darth Vader, and Darth Maul.

The March of the First Order Stormtrooper procession led by Captain Phasma from the Star Wars Launch Bay to the park’s Center Stage adds menace to the entertainment. The just-opened Star Wars Launch Bay showcases large-scale artifacts and encounters with characters including Kylo Ren. The re-imagined Jedi Training: Trials of the Temple experience also features new characters. And at Star Tours – The Adventures Continue, guests buckle up for an enhanced high-speed journey with new Force Awakens characters and a visit to Jakku.

In the park’s Hyperion Theater, the Royal Historians of Arendelle host a jolly sing-along tale of their “Frozen” kingdom with special appearances by Anna, Elsa and Kristoff. And at Celebrity Spotlight, guests can meet Olaf and give him a warm hug.

Judy and Nick both really enjoyed the fireworks and meeting all the different characters, although Nick was way to scared to meet Kylo Ryn.

Kylo Ren is super scary #theforceawakens #zootopiaevent #starwars #darkside

A photo posted by Louise Bishop (@momstart) on Feb 22, 2016 at 3:11pm PST

But he does want you to remember that he has a movie out in theaters…..

Judy also got a selfie with a storm trooper.

Fellow law enforcer #zootopiaevent #starwars #theforceawakens

A photo posted by Louise Bishop (@momstart) on Feb 22, 2016 at 1:29pm PST

Staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge #ZootopiaEvent

February 26, 2016 by Momstart Leave a Comment

This past weekend I spent four days at the Animal Kingdom Lodge with my new pals Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde. They have a movie coming out March 4th called Zootopia. They begged me to show you their trailer so watch this for then and then we’ll share with you all the adventures we had just in the hotel.

Super cute right??? Yes it is and you’ll love the whole movie and if you love animals you’ll love Animal Kingdom Lodge. Animal Kingdom lodge is a huge hotel with everything you need to have an amazing vacation. You don’t even have to leave the property. The amazing thing about Disney is that if you let them they will take care of every detail for you starting at the airport. You can check your bag with Disney’s Magical Express and they will pick it up at the airport and take it to your room. You can check into your room with your magic band and never even have to go to the front desk. I rode the Magical Disney Express from the airport to the lodge. My room wasn’t ready for me right away so I walked around the property with my new friends Nick and Judy.

Nick loves wildlife. Walking around Animal Kingdom Lodge you have the opportunity to see African Safari animals and learn about them. At different times of day there will be experts walking around and they can answer any questions you might have about the animals.

The hotel has lots of activities for children too. One night we saw kids sitting in a circle playing on little drums. And another time I saw older kids playing bigger drums with a lady outside. Nick found his buddy Flash the sloth hanging out at Simba’s Clubhouse.

There are two different sections at Animal Kingdom Lodge and we stayed at Jambo House.

Jambo means hello. And this entrance screams hello.

We finally got our room and boy did it have an amazing view.

And one night we caught an amazing sunset.

If you happen to get a room that doesn’t have a view of animals you can view animals from almost every window on the way to your room.

The swimming pools are huge and there is a kids playground and video game room as well. Like I said lots to do. Jambo House also has three different dining options and if you plan ahead you can get a meal plan. I’ve heard that a meal plan is a great way to save on food while you are staying at Walt Disney World.

Room Service was great

and the beds were divine.

Judy Nick and I all agree that an Animal Kingdom Lodge Stay is well worth it.