SteamBath Factory's month of give-aways

SteamBath Factory

We love the jams and jellies to be found on Etsy. One of our very favorites shops for lipbalm, solid perfume, and bath salts is SteamBath Factory. For the month of September, SteamBath Factory is hosting a series of weekly give-aways. The first give-away is from All Things Little & In Between. This shop is full of yummy chocolates, cake pops, and chocolate covered marshmallows. Everything looks fantastic, especially the Cast a Spell Halloween Mixed Cake Lollipops and the Spookalicious Marshmallow Pops. If you like chocolate and Halloween, hop over to SteamBath Factory's blog and enter to win!

Tangled Ever After

Disney

We absolutely love Tangled at out house, so we were excited to find out that Disney will be releasing a new Tangled short on the Disney Channel next spring. Disney announced the new film at the D-23 Expo. They haven't released too many details about the storyline, but Mandy Moore and Zachary Levi will return as the voices of Rapunzel and Flynn.

Halloween Vinylmation

Disney recently released two new Halloween Vinylmation sets, one available at the Disney Store and DisneyStore.com and the other a Park Exclusive. The Limited Release Spooky Series 1 features Mickey and Minnie as Frankenstein and the Bride of Frankenstein. They are so cute! They are currently available at DisneyStore.com, but are expected to sell out quickly. This first set will be $26.95 and more sets may follow in the Spooky Series.

Disney

The second Vinylmation is a 3" Halloween jack-o-lantern bucket full of candy. This is supposed to be the first in a series that will feature Halloween items. It has a clear head and black arms and legs. This special Halloween collectible will be available at any Disney World or Disneyland location selling Halloween merchandise as well as both D-Street locations. This Vinylmation will be available for $14.95 and will arrive in the display stage style box introduced last year.

POP! Vinyl Series 2

All images: Funko

The second series of POP! Vinyl are now available at Disney Stores nationwide. This new series were first released at the D-23 Expo and at Comic Con in San Diego. The Funko booth at Comic Con also featured Limited Edition 9" versions of a metallic Maleficent and Buzz Lightyear ($50) from series 1 as well as four Limited Edition 3" characters: a metallic Mickey, a flocked Sully, a glow-in-the-dark Mike Wazowski, and Mr. Incredible in his retro blue suit ($15). At the D-23 Expo, they offered two Limited Edition characters: a 9" metallic Steamboat Willie ($50) and a 3" flocked Lotso ($15). Only 480 of these Limited Edition characters were created and they sold out fast! Funko recently stated, “We do have 6 series planned out already… so with the vast Disney/Pixar library at our disposal, it was fun trying to decide who would make our initial run.” It will be fun to see which characters made the cut.

Series 2 includes: Steamboat Willie, pink Minnie Mouse, Belle and the Beast from Beauty and the Beast, Jack Skellington & Sally from the Nightmare Before Christmas, Jessie & Lotso from Toy Story, Boo & George Sanderson from Monsters Inc, and Mr. Incredible & Syndrome from the Incredibles. They will be available exclusively at Disney Stores and DisneyStore.com. They cost $12.50 each, or you can purchase all of Series 2 together for $150.

The next set, Series 3, will include: Peter Pan, Captain Hook, Elastigirl, Edna Mode, Mad Hatter, Cheshire Cat, Toy Story Alien, Zurg, Ursula, Ariel, Donald Duck and Winnie The Pooh.

Muppet Crafts and Recipes

Disney

Do you love the Muppets? I sure do! We love all the Muppet movies, even the less well known ones like Emmett Otter's Jugband Christmas, so I was excited to see that Disney's Family Fun has created several crafts and recipes featuring those lovable creatures, the Muppets.  There are several different crafts to choose from: Pook-a-looz printable Pencil Toppers, Animal's Music-Making Bracelet, a printable 3D Kermit the Frog Chef, and more.

My favorite Muppet recipe is the Kermit Green Apples with Peanut Butter Dip. It's just too cute and so Kermit! I think kids would love it. The craziest recipe is for Animal's Punk Pink Pasta, but it's neon pink, made with beets. I don't know if kids would eat it, but it certainly looks wild like Animal.

These crafts and recipes would be fun to make while counting down to the new movies. If your kids haven't seen a Muppet movie before, I would recommend starting with Muppet Treasure Island or even a Muppet Christmas Carol, even though it's not Christmas. The older Muppet movies like the Muppets Take Manhattan are fantastic, but are old enough that some of the references may be a little dated for today's kids.

The Good Witch's Family

All images: Hallmark

I love the Good Witch series of movies with Catherine Bell. They are wonderful, magical, uplifting stories of a good witch and the people that become her family. In the third movie, the Good Witch's Gift, Cassie Nightingale married Police Chief Jake Russell, after many difficulties.

In the fourth movie, they are settling in to life as a family, although things in Middleton are far from settled. The town is divided over the construction of a bridge that would link the town to a larger city. In the midst of this turmoil, Cassie's cousin Abigail has arrived for an extended visit. But Abigail is jealous of Cassie's happiness and decides to cause a little trouble of her own. With Abigail's "double, double, toil and trouble" attitude wreaking havoc on Cassie's family and the fate of the town up in the air, what's a good witch to do?

I can't wait until this premieres on the Hallmark Channel on October 29, 2011. I'm sure it will be just as wonderful as the previous films, but I've heard that this one doesn't have the grandfather in it, which is rather sad. I've also heard that they plan to make a fifth installment to this series, so hopefully he'll be back.

Pirates of the Caribbean Vinylmation

Disney

I've become a real fan of Disney's Vinylmation figures recently. Honestly, unlike my ridiculous pin collection, I only have one vinylmation so far, but I can see where they would be fun to trade and collect. On July 1, 2011, Disney released a Pirates of the Caribbean collection of vinylmation. There are 11 regular vinylmations and one mystery one. Everyone had hoped the the mystery character would be "We wants the Redhead!" from the ride, but apparently it isn't. Well, whoever the mystery character is, I want the Jack Sparrow in a barrel vinylmation. I love Jack and this vinylmation is too funny!

Pixie Hollow Games

Disney has an all-new Fairy adventure set to air on the Disney Channel this fall. Pixie Hollow Games will feature your favorite fairies in a three-day Olympic style competition. According to Disney, the games will be "an incredible edge-of-your-seat sports spectacle filled with pixie pageantry, fantastic fairy events and humorous surprises." The story is centered around Rosetta, a new arrival Chloe, and other garden fairies as they attempt to break the garden fairies' losing streak. The reigning champions are storm fairies Rumble and Glimmer, who decide to boost up the challenge and make the games the most fantastic competition ever. The website for the show features games and challenges for kids to compete in, as well as training videos from your favorite fairies. Disney is also hosting an art contest for kids to create their own comic strip of fairies training for the games. The grand prize winner will receive a flat screen tv, blu-ray player, Fairies blu-ray collection, Hallmark fairy party supplies, and 5 one-month Pixie Hollow Membership Cards for the winner and her friends. Ten first prize winners will also receive a one-month Pixie Hollow Membership Card and the Fairies blu-ray collection.

Breaking Dawn, Part 1

Summit

I love the Twilight books and movies. I can't wait for Breaking Dawn, Part 1, which arrives in theaters November 18, 2011. Several photos have been released from the film, as well as an awesome trailer. It's fun to see the different reactions the characters have when receiving Bella and Edward's wedding invitation.

The photos can be found at Fandango on their Breaking Dawn page. I love the way they have Bella and Edward playing chess in a few of the photos. I think it's a lot of fun the way they've included the imagery from the book covers in the movies.

Breaking Dawn invitation

You are cordially invited to the wedding of Isabella Marie Swan and Edward Anthony Masen Cullen. The wedding will take place today at 5 o'clock in the evening. Unfortunately, the wedding won't reach the big screen until the movie debuts November 18.

Rapunzel Contest

As I mentioned in a previous post, Rapunzel will soon be officially made the 10th Disney Princess. There will be a big celebration at Kensington Palace in London to mark the event. The Disney Store is giving away a trip for 4 to that celebration. To enter, simply click on the image. The Grand Prize is a Trip for 4 to London, UK as the special invited guests at "Rapunzel's Royal Celebration" on October 2, 2011. The winner will be the VIP guest of the Oxford Street Disney Store and participate in the opening ceremony. The winner also receives round-trip airfare, 5-day/4-night hotel accommodation, $2000 spending money in London, and a $500 shopping spree at a US Disney Store. All in all, it sounds like a fantastic grand prize. Good luck!

What Treasure Lies Beneath?

Disney/Verizon

Disney and Verizon just launched the "Discover What You Treasure" Sweepstakes. The Grand Prize is a 5-day, 4-night trip for 4 to Disney World. And to top it off, the winning family will spend one night in the Cinderella Castle Suite. I would love to stay in the Cinderella Suite! It looks like so much fun! The winner will also receive a Verizon Wireless phone with the Mobile Magic app. I haven't tried the Mobile Magic app yet, but I understand it can help you to make the most of your visit to the parks by letting you know about wait times, remind you of FastPass return times, show you the entertainment schedule, and more. I used to carry the Pal Mickey, which I loved, but he could get kind of heavy to lug around. The Mobile Magic app would be much easier, because I already carry my phone.
So enter the contest today for your chance to win.

In the Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki, Tiki Room!

Disney

I have always loved the Tiki Room, even if it is rather silly. I loved it as a child and I wanted Bean to enjoy it too. We used to play the songs for her when she was a toddler, and she loved them. (We always sang along, too. The songs are so catchy, you just can't help it!) When we took Bean to Disney World a few years ago, we decided to go to the Tiki Room again. Boy were we disappointed! I missed hearing my favorite songs and I didn't care for Iago and Zazu running the show. It was just plain weird. 

However, I have good news for lovers of the classic Tiki Room... Disney is bringing it back! Beginning August 15, the Tiki Room will be back under the old management. They will employ modern technology for the audio and animatronic controls, as well as a new, energy efficient lighting system, but the songs will be the old classics. I can't wait to see it again and share the real Tiki Room with Bean.

Inside the UP house

The Real UP House

The Salt Lake Tribune has filmed a brief tour of the interior of the UP house that is part of the Salt Lake City Parade of Homes.

They've matched as much of the interior as possible to the movie. I love the kitchen with all of the kitschy blue retro appliances. They even have a few potential buyers, although I'm sure there will be several interested parties before the final sale.

Devonshire shoes from American Duchess

I love finding appropriate accessories for re-enactors, and these shoes look gorgeous! They would be perfect for an Elizabeth Swann costume.

The Devonshires are a leather 18th century shoe based on museum examples from the 1760s through 1780s.  They're made of top-grade dyable leather, with a beautiful, smooth Italian leather sole for dancing, and are hard-wearing, water- and mud-proof, for even the toughest of outdoor re-enactments.

Pre-Order the Devonshires through August 10, and get the special $100 price.  We're only making 200 of these shoes, so don't miss the chance to own one of only a couple hundred pair on the planet!  Visit www.american-duchess.com to order.

Validation

Theatre Junkies

My mom just called to tell me about this totally awesome short that she had seen in a class she was taking today. It features TJ Thyne, the actor who plays Dr. Jack Hodgins on the tv series Bones. (Which happens to be my favorite show!) My sister and I watched it on Youtube and it was so wonderful that I just have to share it with everyone. It is the story of a parking attendant whose idea of validation goes beyond just stamping your parking ticket. I loved it!

Pirates of the Caribbean Breakfast

Aaarrrgggghhh a good Pirate breakfast to start the day! 

I just saw the most hilarious photo on Facebook. The Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides page posted a photo of a good pirate breakfast. I love the skull shaped eggs and crossbones bacon! I also noticed that they have a Pirate Yourself app. I haven't tried it yet, but the app enables you to dress yourself up as a pirate and join Captain Jack's Crew. It really looks fun!