Disney Movie of the Week: Toy Story

Ah childhood...a time where all you needed was your teddy bear and a Barbie and everything was alright. You lugged your favorite toy around everywhere. The doctors, the grocery store, even the park. You cried when it got lost, and rejoiced when mom or dad found it again. 

Now we have mortgages and jobs and crap like that. Yippee. 

Toy Story is the story of kids and adults everywhere. It reminds us about the simpler times where your biggest worry was where you put your favorite action figure. 

I love the Toy Story trilogy and I am way excited to make the first one our Disney Movie of The Week!!

What We Love: The characters, the iconic songs, the nostalgia. We love pretty much everything in this movie! It's one of those movies that make you laugh out loud. And when you get older you get more of the jokes. When I watched it last week I finally got this quote:

I was snort-laughing for about 10 minutes after this...

What we don't love: Dude what's up with Sid? If I was his mom I'd be like, "slow your roll..you psycho spawn of Satan.." And then I'd ship him off to military boarding school. Like a boss. 

Favorite Quotes: 

Woody: "The word I'm searching for, I can't say, because there are preschool toys present,"

Mr. Potato Head: "You uncultured swine!"...I may or may not use this as an insult in my daily life...

Buzz: "You are a sad strange little man, you have my pity."

Toy Story in Disneyland: Toy Story Mania in California Adventures is a great ride for all ages. You basically get to ride through an arcade and play numerous arcade favorites. This is one of those rides that you go on for the air conditioning, but it's great fun for the little ones. I LOVE Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters. again it's a great AC ride, but great for all ages. Armed with a laser cannon while operating a XP-40 space cruiser, you'll fly through the galaxy protecting all intergalactic citizens from the evil Emperor Zurg. You can get some bookoo points depending on what you hit. 

I would also like to clear something up: There is a rumor that if you yell "Andy's coming!" to any of the Toy Story characters, they will fall to the ground. I've been trying this for like 5 years, and it doesn't happen. I'm thinking it's because of  the costumes. Or the chance that they might be trampled on...I heard that they used to do this but they don't anymore...sorry to burst your bubble folks. 

Do you prefer Toy Story Mania or Buzz's Astro Blasters? What is your favorite part of the first Toy Story? Let me know in the comments! Also don't forget about my giveaway that you can find here!

Saturday Sentiments

Lots of crap has been going on around here the last few days and since I am too lazy to write it all in multiple posts...it's all going into one. And because I wish to be like other fancy schmancy bloggers I'm just going to call it Saturday Sentiments...so buckle up Betty because we got a lot of ground to cover.

Tell Me How Am I Supposed To Breathe With No Air.....

So the drama with the AC continues. Let me back it up from the beginning. The AC was working. And then it wasn't. Well. The AC unit outside works. But the thingy that makes the air come out of the vents does not (can't you tell I'm a HVAC profesh...). So we get a new motor. No worky. So we buy a new capacitor...no worky. We fork out over $100 for a dude to come out and look at it. The brand new motor we bought was bad. So we buy another one. It no fit. We return it and buy ANOTHER one. It works and makes cold air go WHOOSH out of air vents. YAAAYY!!! A few days later, it no worky again. Fuse goes bye-bye. Buy new fuse. No worky. Ari sad. Brody very sad. No air conditioning again. It's almost July and we have no AC. Oh boy. If anyone has any ideas on how to proceed I will love you forever.

Let's Get Down To Business

....It's a Disney blog, what do you expect....

So last Summer I started a little Social Media management business on the side. I had about 4 clients. I told them I would give them 30 days of free Social Media and then they would be charged for whatever package they selected. After the 30 days 3 out of 4 clients wanted to sign up. Not one person paid me. Not one. I would call and leave messages. i would send emails. One client would call and ask me to do a marketing project and I'd be like, "Uh dude. Pay me what you owe first and then I'll worry about that." And everyone was like:

Because it's a cricket...get it...anything? No?

  So I pretty much told them to suck it and I dropped the whole thing. Now I'm thinking of starting it up again. I love doing it. I have great ideas and I have a passion for learning about it. And I'm yearning to be my own boss. I want to target bloggers and small businesses. It's still in the dreaming stage and with me paying off debt, it will probably stay there for awhile. I'm interested in hearing from any business owners with their stories of how they got started and any resources they can direct me to!

And Finally...My Dog's an Asshole...

Pardon the language but she really is. And I can't do anything about it because look at this dog:

How do you get mad at a dog that can wear a cape like a boss? Answer: you can't...

But I am. For one big reason. She has major territorial issues with our cat. So we adopted Buttons over 6 months ago. She was found outside of the shelter so there was no information on her. She had a great demeanor and she really is a sweet dog. But she has this problem. She goes potty in the room that Taffy's litter box is in. I talked to her vet, and he said she shouldn't be doing that, she should be going potty by the back door if she couldn't hold it. I talked to 4 (count em..4) animal behavioral specialists and they all said the same thing, she's thinking Taffy and her are in a territorial battle over that room. So we have been crating her at night because that's when she goes potty in that room. Crating went really well (we think she was crate trained before). Well Friday morning I open the back door to let her go potty outside. She refused. I asked her again. She refused. I go up stairs and she's standing in Taffy's room. I tell her to get out. And she takes a shit...while looking at me directly in the eye. What an a-hole. So now she has to get crated while we are at work and while we are sleeping. After a while she can roam free and see if she does it again. 

We put her crate in our office and now she thinks that's HER room. Taffy tries to come in and sit with me while I'm working and Buttons snaps at her. Not ok. I'm thinking we have a long road of training ahead of us...

We are going to the air show today at Hill Air Force base and then we have a BBQ to go to tomorrow. What do you guys have planned this weekend?

PS: I'm watching the premiere of Girl Meets World as we speak! Look out for a review soon!Who watched it last night?!

Get Stitchy Wit It

The AC is FINALLY fixed!!! YAAAAAAAYYYY!!! I will never take it for granted again! Anyways...moving on...

We talked about our love of Lilo and Stitch here. Stitch is a big deal in our house. Brody and I both adore him. In fact it is one of the few Disney movies that Brody will watch the whole way through. (He watched Frozen but there might have been duct tape involved...ahem...).

Why doesth thou love Stitch? Well here are a few reasons..

1.) The things he says..

OMG the words that come out of that aliens mouth...hilarious and yet sometimes so insightful...

2.) His style

The dude has some great fashion sense...just saying..

3.) He's cute and fluffy

How can you be mad at that face?

SQUUUEEEEEEEEE!!!! He's so cute I can't stand it!!!

Wouldn't it be fun if you had a Stitch of your own? Me thinks everyone should have a Stitch. So I am giving away a special plush of Stitch! Enter below to win and then on July 7th I will announce a winner! If you don't happen to luck out on this giveaway, you can purchase your own Stitch plush here. Good luck kidlets!

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

Maleficent: My Review

The first part of this post will contain general information about the film "Maleficent". It does not contain any big spoilers.

On Friday night my mom and I saw "Maleficent". I was very skeptical at first. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Sleeping Beauty. Since I can remember it was one of my favorite stories. So I was worried about the re-telling of this Disney classic. 

I had heard many things about the movie. There was a ton of media hype. I was put off by it. I like Angelina Jolie but I have never been immersed by her acting. She never seemed to disappear into her roles (with the exception of "A Mighty Heart" and "Changelings") so I was worried about her performance of Maleifcent. Maleifcent is one of the best Disney Villains. She is ruthless and heartless. I wanted that to be portrayed in the movie.

First let me say, Angelina Jolie was AMAZING! She was everything a villain should be. I absolutely can not picture anyone else in this role. And her cheekbones are out of this world...remember friends: highlighting and contouring...

I was also surprised at Elle Fanning's performance as Aurora. I was worried about how my favorite Disney princess was going to be portrayed but Elle was adorable. In every way. She was stunning in this movie!

I will say that the twists were well done and the imagery was gorgeous. The Moors (were Maleficent is from) is a gorgeous placed filled with wonderful creatures. I really liked this movie. I suggest watching it with an open mind and I think you'll enjoy it too!

Before I move on to the second half I will say this: I saw lots and lots of little ones in the theater. A ton of them got really scared and I heard some of them start to cry and scream at certain parts. The movie is rated PG. If your kids can handle some scary stuff then I think they could handle it. My suggestion would be is to watch it first and then decide if your kids could handle it. Common Sense Media says it's appropriate for children 8 and up. You can find their review of it here.

*************************SPOILER ALERT!!!**************************

 The movie explains how Maleficent became evil. And I thought the story was very well written. Long story short, the creatures of the Moor and Humans do not get along. A young (and GORGEOUS) Maleficent, a fairy with huge mighty wings, meets a human orphan named Stefan. They become close friends and even grow to love each other. Stefan is power hungry and wants to be king, his ambitions stops him from seeing Maleficent for a long time. The king declares war on the Moors and Maleficent kicks his ass. The king says who ever can end Maleficent will become king. Stefan goes back to Maleficent, butters her up with some alcohol like drink, and then takes off her wings and delivers them to the king.

This scene is hard to watch. I would also think it is hard to explain to young curious children. It becomes even harder to watch when Maleficent wales up and discovers her wings are gone and she is in immense pain. Some people have said it was like watching date-rape. I didn't think it was that intense but then again it's a different view for everybody.  

After Maleficent finds out her wings have been taken, she gets a little pissed off and she makes herself Queen of the Moors. She meets a raven named Diaval, and he becomes her right hand man to spy on the now King Stefan (She can change Diaval into any creature, she turns him into a man, raven, dog and he becomes the iconic dragon as well). When she finds Stefan and the queen have had a child she becomes very angry and then we see the scene like in the original animated film.

The blessing scene is my favorite. She was so deliciously evil! Both scenes are very very similar so I loved that touch. It was awesome to see Angelina in this scene and this was when I became fully immersed into her character. This is were I felt like they had made the perfect choice for Maleficent.

One thing I didn't like was how they renamed the three fairies. And how different their characters were from the animated film. But I guess that's how it had to be in order to set up the story line twist of Maleficent becoming a silent guardian for Aurora. Although I wasn't thrilled with the three good fairies I did like the story line of Maleficent befriending Aurora.

I'll stop there with how the story goes. But I did LOVE the twist at the end. It was definitely not was I expected and I love when a movie does that. 

My Overall Thought for the movie:

With the exception of a few things I really loved this movie. Angelina Jolie surprised me for sure. I thought the story line was fantastic and I thought the imagery was awesome. I really liked the character Diaval! 

I was surprised with how many comedic moments there were in the movie as well. They were subtle but they made the movie even better. 

Will I see it again?

Yes for sure! I'll most likely buy it as well! 

Do I still love the classic?

Of course! I think both versions are great. I really think people should put them in different categories though. I think if you spend the entire movie comparing the two you are going to hate it. 

Have you seen Maleficent yet? Let me know what you think about it in the comments! and don't forget about my Disney movie giveaway! As soon as I reach 100 FB likes and Twitter followers I'll give away one of the Disney Movies (could even be this one!) to a lucky reader! 

  

Disney Movie of The Week: Lilo and Stitch

So last week we cooled down with a family movie night from Frozen. This week we are heating things up to a trip to Hawaii to see Lilo and Stitch! Here is what we love about this movie and how you can make this week's family movie night a night to remember! 

What We Love: Stitch is seriously adorable. Who wouldn't want a Stitch. To me he reminds me a little bit of Brody, who can sometimes be a Stitch himself, but is still adorable so I can't be too mad... I also love Lilo's sister, Nani. She is spunky and she tries super hard at being a good sister and parent to Lilo.  This movie makes ya cry and laugh all at the same time...which makes it a great Disney movie! It has great lessons about the importance of family and never leaving anyone behind.  

Is it weird that I dress Buttons up like this??

What we don't love: That part when Stitch leaves and he's all like, "I'm lost.." OMG cry fest over here!! 

 Favorite quotes:  

"Pudge controls the weather. " 

"Oh good! My dog found the chainsaw! " 

"Thus far you have been adrift in the sheltered harbor of my patience." (If I ever meet Ving Rhames I'm going to totally ask him to say this..) 

How To Make It A Fun Movie Night:  

To serve: Fresh fruit, or even a peanut butter or tuna sandwich (although if you with the tuna you might be an abomination...) 

To wear: you can buy leis from the dollar store, as everyone is coming into the living room before the movie hand them out! 

To decorate: So I'm not super big on decorating for a movie that lasts like an hour and a half. But it can be fun to add some mini umbrellas to your drinks or even just throw a grass skirt over your coffee table. Little touches can be fun for a movie night! You can also check out some super fun ideas here!

What do you like about Lilo & Stitch? What is your favorite part or quote from the movie? Let me know in the comments!

Being Grateful

We still have no AC, we've fixed everything we can think of and still, nothing is working. Utah cooled down a little bit this week but now we are heading back into our Summer temps. I'm praying we get it fixed before July comes and we hit 100 degree weather. During this time of no air conditioning, I found myself realizing how blessed we are. So I made a list (I love lists...) of some of the things I am grateful for. 

Air Conditioning 

Not only for my sake, but the furbabies sake as well. I feel so bad for them. If I'm hot, they must feel ten times worse. The fact that we have the technology to change the temperature in our house is amazing! I will never take it for granted again.

Clean Water 

The other day Brody was watering the lawn and he said, "We are so lucky to be able to have enough clean water that we can pump 50 gallons of it onto grass just so it looks pretty...when there are people who don't even have clean water to drink." Couldn't have said it any better my love. The fact that we have clean water to not only drink but to play in and bathe in, is a big deal. And we all seem to take it for granted.  

My Furbabies 

If you know me, you know my furbabies are my kids. I call them my kids. The other night Buttons was sleeping next to me and I just stared at her for about 10 minutes and just felt so much love. I'm so glad to have our animals. They mean the world to me. They offer so much unconditional love.  

The cuteness gets her out of trouble...alot...

My House 

I love my house. I mean, LOVE it. It is one of my favorite places (next to Disneyland) in the world. I know how blessed I am that we own a home and that we have such a beautiful place to call our shelter.  

My Spouse 

Brody is THEE best partner in the world. He is patient, loving, supportive and he makes me cry from laughing at least once a day. He always has my back.  

My Family 

Crazy? Yes. Dysfunctional? A little...but I am very grateful for my family. I wouldn't be were I am today without them. 

My Blog/Other Bloggers 

I love how there are SO many blogs out there but instead of everyone competing against each other, we all empower and support one another. While some people read the morning paper, I read blogs! It is a great escape away from stress and I have come to love so many great blogs and bloggers!  

And of course..  

Disney! 

Disney gave me an escape when I was a kid. My mom was a young mother who went from being a military wife who had a deployed husband to being a single mom. My mom kicked ass at making sure us kids adjusted well but when your dad just stops being in your life it can be heartbreaking. Disney distracted me from that. It also taught me to never give up on dreams and to always "keep moving forward". Disney also instilled an imagination in me, between Disney and my mom I discovered a love of reading and writing. And it taught me to never ignore the inner child in you! 

I truly believe that being grateful is good karma. When you are feeling like everything is bringing you down, sit down and write 5 things you are grateful for, In fact, let's do it right now! What are you grateful for?! 

Sooooo I Can't Eat This Cupcake Right?

"We have to talk about your diet."

"Um...no we don't."

"Yes, yes we do."

"Naaaahhh..."

"Arielle, you are not healthy. You are killing yourself slowly. You will not be able to live a long life if you don't change."

Well ouch. That's intense.

I have always been slender. I have always been able to eat all the pizza and candy bars in the world and not gain an ounce. I never had to work out because I was already "in shape". Was I out of breath walking up the stairs? Yeah, but it didn't matter I was 120 lbs and almost 6' tall. Who needs to feel good on the inside when you look good on the outside?

But sitting in my doctors office this week, shit hit the fan. And it went everywhere. My endometriosis is threatening my chance of getting pregnant in the future, and we needed to be on the baby making track sooner than I thought. I have ulcers (blame those a-holes on paying of my student loans). And I was told that if I don't change my habits soon, I'll be a diabetic.

Almost every single time I am in the gym I hear the same thing from at least one person: "You're skinny you don't need to work out!" Yeah ok. I'll just go home and live my life not being able to not open my own damn water bottles. Or be able to pick up my hefty corgi to put her in a bath. One of the biggest misconceptions out there is that healthy is skinny. No no my friends. Slender can be healthy. But healthy doesn't mean skinny. 

So I sat in my doctor's office with tears threatening to fall out of the corner of my eyes. We have a very small window to try to get pregnant. And even then there is still a chance that I won't be able to. I have ulcers. I am killing myself...slowly...but surely. My doctor said to me, "What you need to understand is, the choices you make today are going to affect you tomorrow." And it made sense. 

It seems like our society is full of emotional eaters. We are sad, so we need ice cream. We are stressed so we need a chocolate bar. We were born 25 years ago, we need cake. Everything is revolved around a meal. Which isn't all bad. But sometimes it seems like we trade experiences for food. 

A while ago I watched two documentaries on Netflix called "Food Matters" and "Hungry for Change". And it definitely opened my eyes of the things we put in our bodies. So I was pretty good for a while and then I slacked off. And then I got worse. I needed chocolate everyday. I needed french fries everyday. I needed doughnuts and cupcakes everyday. And everything I learned went out the window. I was fatigued everyday. And I was constantly getting sick.

So we made a plan. No red meat. Poultry in moderation, and lots of fish. Unlimited veggies and I can have fruit for snacks. Limited dairy and gluten. No refined sugars and processed food. No caffeine. When I told people about the new "lifestyle" I heard over and over and over (think broken record), "You can't eat anything good!" But I disagree. Once the cravings subside I think I'll be fine. I actually love fruits and veggies! So as long as those are in the house I think I'll be fine. I look at it as a challenge for creativity!

I know it's going to be hard. I know that I may break down and have a piece of chocolate. But when I do, I won't beat myself up but I won't allow myself to give up either. It's been hard to find a support system. Most of the people I talk to about it have made it seem that it's going to inconvenience them more than anything. I just have to learn that it's not about them. It's about me feeling healthy and having a great life. And I'm finding out that you don't need ice cream or cupcakes to have a great life. So any advice or if you are going through a similar situation let me know in the comments!

That One Time I Decided to Run a Half Marathon

So Utah decided to be Utah and drop down like 20 degrees this week. So that means people all over are using their heaters to warm their little tushies. However, in the Freestone/Boardman house we have no heat. YAY home-ownership!!! So I'm sitting in my office wearing 5 layers of clothing and a pair of gloves. Oh the joy.

 Yeah so, running. I don't do that stuff. Ever. So why did I decide that running 13.1 miles would be a super duper great idea? I don't know, because it's in Disneyland...I really think I was dropped a few times as a baby. 

I have decided that I will be running in the Tinkerbell Half Marathon next May. I figured that would give me time to train so I won't kill over. A lot of people said that I don't need a full 11 months to train..ahem...um...I ran for two minutes straight the other day and thought I was going to die. 

I'm going to start out with the From Couch to 5k plan and then go from there. I've only been training for a week but so far so good. Whenever I feel like giving up I just think of the discounted Disneyland tickets I'll be getting, and all the Dole Whips and Turkey Legs I'll be eating afterwards...Holla!

Brody might also be running with me. I warned him that it's a ladies themed run...but hey, if he runs with me I'll know that I will have the best team mate there. 

I also need to think of a costume! If you do a RunDisney event it's kinda like an unwritten rule that you have a costume. Have any of you ran in a RunDisney event? If so, what's your advice on costumes? I'm kinda nervous to run in a costume just because I can't even run in clothes made for running (ps: last week was the first week I used yoga pants for like working out and stuff...amazing!). Also if anyone has ANY advice on running (what kind of shoes to wear, diet, yada yada yada..) I am so down to hear it. 

Already on my Christmas list mom....ahem...AHEM..

I wanted to share some of my favorite running blogs that I read religiously. When I feel super lazy I just read a few posts on these blogs and they make me feel crazy motivated again (like 'Eye of the Tiger' running up stairs, beating up hanging meat motivated..)!

Glitter Girl Runs  

Mommy Runs It

Livy Loves to Run
My No-Guilt Life

If you have a running blog let me know! Imma need all the help I can get the next few months...now if you'll excuse me...I am in search of an oxygen tank, which I will be needing..

Disney Movie of The Week: Frozen

To say that this week's movie caused a frenzy would be an understatement...from crazy lines to meet the characters at the Parks, to people wreaking havoc to buy merchandise at the stores, this movie is probably one of Disney's most popular animated films since the 90's. And although some people are totally over it, I still LOVE this movie! So pop some popcorn (or a snow cone might be more appropriate), and grab a blanket because your house is about to get:

 

What we love: I love how this movie is reminiscent to classic Disney. It made me think of the princess movies that I grew up with and cherished. The songs were on point, the voice actors were great (um hello, Idina Menzel? Seriously? Amazeballs...had to say it), and the story had a ton of great lessons (ie: guys pick their nose, don't get engaged to a guy you just met like 12 hours ago...I'm looking at you, Utah population..). 

What we don't love: Yeah this guy:

Yeah he looks innocent...but DON'T TRUST HIM

Without giving too much away, I hated this guy more than any Disney villain ever. Yeah. Intense.

Also I thought Kristoff needed another song. I mean seriously, if you are going to cast a Broadway star like Johnathon Groff, you give him more than a 30 second song. I think they should have replaced the Troll's song with another Kristoff number. In my opinion.

Lovable characters: I totally want a Sven. And an Olaf. They are so so adorable! Olaf's song "In Summer" is one of thee cutest Disney songs to date!

Frozen Frenzy: This movie caused a ton of frenzy in the parks, mostly Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom. With lines to meet Elsa and Anna exceeding 4 hours, people got a little cray-cray. There were reports of pushing and shoving causing injuries just so people could get in line first. Ok first of all: For those who think that it's acceptable to do that: 

YOU ARE RUINING EVERYTHING GOOD AND MAGICAL ABOUT DISNEY WORLD! Seriously?! You have to HURT people (including children!!) in order to see a princess for what, 30 seconds?! And you are teaching your children that is it totally fine to push and shove and be mean in order to get what you want? Get real! Walt would be SO disappointed in you! Oh yeah I pulled the "Walt card", that's how serious this is...

Ok enough of that drama. 

Anways, Frozen is a fantastic movie for Family Movie night! It is filled with amazing music, the lesson of the importance of family, and some great belly laughs! Make it even more special by serving snow cones (just not lemon flavored..) or ice cream! I absolutely enjoy this movie and it definitely hasn't gotten old for me!

What is YOUR favorite part of Frozen? And what do you think about all the hype it's causing? Do you think it will calm down anytime soon?

Hint for next weeks DMOTW: We are leaving the cold of Arendelle and setting off for a big adventure on the islands of Hawaii!!