Continuing our summer Disney movie series I am going to share about three press conferences I attended during the Toy Story 4 junket. This is part two. You can read part one here.

I sat in a screening room where we watched Toy Story 4 and in walked members of the Toy Story 4 cast, including the iconic Tim Allen, voice of Buzz Lightyear.

The press conference wasn’t super long. I didn’t even try to ask a question because, well after interviewing Oprah and meeting her at the after party, I decided I was just going to sit back and let others have their big moments. I just wanted to be present and soak it in.

I did share some tweets about the news, and snap a few photos for my instagram stories. But mostly I just enjoyed it.

I’m sure a quick google search will take you to all sorts of articles about the press conference and get you a play-by-play of the entire interview. One of my friends wrote a great one. But I wanted to focus on something that stood out from each press conference for me.

During this press conference There were a couple of things. One was Tim Allen talking about the magnitude we all feel when seeing how much this movie has grown.

“It’s a theme park at Disney World based on this movie that we started 25 years ago,” Allen said. “I saw it, I saw the original tensor lamp film school done by John Lasseter. And I loved that computer animation. I saw this done to a terrific story that Pixar came up with. Back then, I wanted these guys, I loved that story. I loved the story so much.”

Another moment that stuck out to me was when Christina Hendricks, Madmen star and voice of Gabby Gabby in Toy Story 4 opened up about the impact she hopes her character leaves on girls.

“I think when children see this movie, she comes across as sort of like the villain at first,” she said. “And then you realize that she’s coming from a very loving place. And I think that’s important to sort of say maybe you don’t like someone at first. But how did they get there and why are they there and understanding their story. So I think she’s very special in that way. “

She went on to say there’s an important message there about not judging others before you get to know them.

“I think that ultimately, you have to listen to everyone’s full story before you make a judgment about them, and to hopefully not make a judgment about them,” Hendricks said. “I think that’s the lovely thing that she brings to this part of the story is that everyone comes from a place and it’s what made them who they are and you need to listen to that before you can fully understand them.”

A message I wholeheartedly try to share on this blog. And one I think got through to my daughter while watching the movie. You can read her review here.

Toy Story 4 hits theaters this weekend! June 21st. Go see it then come back and let us know what you think!

Continuing our summer Disney movie series I am going to share about three press conferences I attended during the Toy Story 4 junket. This is the concluding part three. You can read part one here, part two here.

After the main press conference a group of us were invited to interview Annie Potts, voice of Bo Peep.

What you may not realize when you’re watching the movie is how much time went into making these movies. The actors weren’t given a full script to look over, instead they came in and would record pieces of dialog then leave and maybe not return for months at a time.

“And you know, sometimes there would be 6 months lag time before I came back again and sometimes I would forget so I’ve been working on this for over 4 years so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I saw it,” Potts said.

Did you miss Bo Peep in the third movie? Uh, yea… I didn’t really either. But once you’ve seen who she’s become in this fourth installment you’ll never forget her again.

A whole team worked together to create Bo Peep.

“They were called Team Bo, and they were in touch of defining everything about her. How she might move, how she would move her eyes, what she would think,” Potts said. “So they were, I mean, everything about these is so carefully considered.  I mean, that’s why they’re Masterpieces.”

And all that hard work turned into a masterpiece. And this fall expect a little influx of girls dressed as Bo Peep.

“I can hardly wait until Halloween and see all the little girls because she is, I think she’s very relatable,” Potts said.  “She’s feminine but nobody’s fool.  And I think little girls are empowered by that and I think the world is moving that way and I think Bo gives it a nice shove in that direction.”

Bo Peep was my daughter’s favorite character in this movie (Forky was a very very close 2nd). And I’m excited to hear what you all think. Read our spoiler-free review of Toy Story 4 here.

Toy Story 4 hits theaters is in theaters now! Go see it then come back and let us know what you think!

If there’s one thing that stands out in Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time” it’s the immaculate costumes. It’s one piece of the puzzle I couldn’t quite put together when reading the story. Then again, I didn’t picture the three Mrs to be so gorgeous. I imagined old ladies wrapped up in bedsheets. Not glamorous dresses.

If you’ve seen the movie you know how stunning the costumes are, and how MANY there are. It seems as though every other scene the three Mrs had different dresses on.

The man behind those designs is Paco Delgado, and our group had the opportunity to talk to him about his inspiration while we were in Los Angeles last month. He said the tiny words on Mrs. Who’s costume cape were first inspired by graffiti.

“I was thinking, you know, that you walk into the streets, and graffiti is amazing… I don’t think a lot of people have really stopped to think about it. But graffiti is an amazing artistic expression,” Delgado said. “It’s not just, making a drawing of a butterfly. It’s like saying a message.”

Paco Delgado; photo via: Louise Manning Bishop / MomStart.com

And that’s what led him to realize Mindy Kaling’s character Mrs. Who could have something like graffiti all over her dress. Then he thought of ways he could evolve the words beyond just the English language.

“We all use the Latin alphabet, but on that, I just thought, you know, I mean, she embodies all the culture,” Delgado said. “She has to have Chinese. She has to have, you know, an invented alphabet. Consistently being in the universe. And maybe she speaks a language of a culture that we haven’t encountered yet. Or maybe in 200 years we will encounter them.”

For more on our interview with costume designer Paco Delgado just search #WrinkleinTimeEvent on Twitter and you’ll see many more perspectives. And in case you are totally in the dark about A Wrinkle in Time, here’s a bit to get you up to speed:

Visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.

Disney

Meg Murry is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who just wants to fit in. The daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is Meg’s younger brother, Charles Wallace, but she has yet to realize it for herself. Complicating matters is the mysterious disappearance of Mr. Murry, which has left Meg devastated and her mother broken-hearted. Charles Wallace introduces Meg and her fellow classmate Calvin to three celestial beings (Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who) who have journeyed to Earth to help search for their father, and together they embark on their formidable quest. Traveling via a wrinkling of time and space known as tessering, they are transported to worlds beyond their imagination where they must confront a powerful evil force. To make it back home to Earth, Meg must face the darkness within herself in order to harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness rapidly enveloping the Universe.

Directed by Oscar® nominee Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Oscar winner Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, “A Wrinkle in Time” stars: two-time Academy Award® nominee

Oprah Winfrey as Mrs. Which, Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon as Mrs. Whatsit, Emmy® nominee Mindy Kaling as Mrs. Who, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Mrs. Murry, Michael Peňa as Red and introducing Storm Reid as Meg Murry, with two-time Emmy winner Zach Galifianakis as The Happy Medium and Emmy nominee Chris Pine as Mr. Murry.

“A Wrinkle in Time” opened nationwide on March 9, 2018. [You can read our Wrinkle in Time kid’s review here.]

Of all the interviews we did with the cast of Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time” Jennifer Lee surprised me the most.

We’d already interviewed Oprah Winfrey and Ava DuVernay and I was just in seventh heaven, ready to sit back and soak in all the wonderful words I’d heard. But Jennifer Lee came in just as sweet as can be, and really surprised me with her story and passion.

If you didn’t know already, she directed Frozen, and she was the screenwriter for “A Wrinkle in Time”.

Adapting a book for a movie is no easy feat. I know I go into movies expecting them to be similar to the book, not leave anything too important out, and to blow me away with visual effects you just can’t put in a book. So often I’m sad because the movies just aren’t long enough to cram it all in. Or I wish they’d broken apart from the book a little more, or a little less. It can’t be easy. But Jennifer was up to the challenge.

Jennifer Lee; photo:  Louise Manning Bishop / MomStart.com

Some of my favorite parts in the movie were lines pulled from the book. I asked Jennifer Lee if there were lines she just knew had to be in the movie.

“Oh yeah. Oh god, yea.” She said. “‘Wild nights are my glory.’ ‘I give you your flaws.’ There are so many.”

Lee said she would sometimes think lines were from the book then she’d go back to the book and realize that it wasn’t.

“Like Mrs. Which says to Meg at one point, and I thought this was in the book, where she says, Do you know all of the events that had to occur in the universe to create you exactly as you are?’ And I was like, oh, that’s not in the book, that’s just what the book gave me.”

A message of accepting yourself that shines through in both the book and the film.

I also asked her about changing Mrs. Who’s character to speak in more modern quotes.

“Yeah. Well, in the book she didn’t just talk in quotes,” Lee said. “She also spoke with regular voice. But I couldn’t understand sort of the exact motivation of that. So for myself, I said, well, what if she’s evolved past language? She’s so evolved. And so she uses our words.”

via Disney

She said it allowed them to never have to be exactly on the nose with the quote.

“If she’s drawing from the canon of history, she could draw from anyone. We didn’t have to stick to some quotes from certain periods of like Shakespeare or stuff. We could have Jay-Z, we could have anyone we wanted,” Lee said. “We had a blast, people sending in emails to Ava, to me, about favorite quotes they have. So that was really fun.”

“[We] didn’t realize how complicated that process was,” Lee said. “But it was fun.”

For more on our interview with Jennifer Lee just search #WrinkleinTimeEvent on Twitter and you’ll see many more perspectives. And in case you are totally in the dark about A Wrinkle in Time, here’s a bit to get you up to speed:

Visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.

Meg Murry is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who just wants to fit in. The daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is Meg’s younger brother, Charles Wallace, but she has yet to realize it for herself. Complicating matters is the mysterious disappearance of Mr. Murry, which has left Meg devastated and her mother broken-hearted. Charles Wallace introduces Meg and her fellow classmate Calvin to three celestial beings (Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who) who have journeyed to Earth to help search for their father, and together they embark on their formidable quest. Traveling via a wrinkling of time and space known as tessering, they are transported to worlds beyond their imagination where they must confront a powerful evil force. To make it back home to Earth, Meg must face the darkness within herself in order to harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness rapidly enveloping the Universe.

Directed by Oscar® nominee Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Oscar winner Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, “A Wrinkle in Time” stars: two-time Academy Award® nominee

Oprah Winfrey as Mrs. Which, Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon as Mrs. Whatsit, Emmy® nominee Mindy Kaling as Mrs. Who, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Mrs. Murry, Michael Peňa as Red and introducing Storm Reid as Meg Murry, with two-time Emmy winner Zach Galifianakis as The Happy Medium and Emmy nominee Chris Pine as Mr. Murry.

“A Wrinkle in Time” opened nationwide on March 9, 2018. [You can read our Wrinkle in Time kid’s review here.]

We met A LOT of people during Disney’s press day for “A Wrinkle in Time”. One of the cute cast members was Rowan Blanchard  who plays Veronica Kiley, the bully in the film.

During our interview she spoke a bit about the the bullying and comparisons she felt while attending public school.

Rowan Blanchard “Veronica Kiley”;  Photo: Louise Manning Bishop / MomStart.com

I think it’s just this horrible sort of competition is bred between girls, especially in those years that we’re talking about,” she said. “It is really reduced to your body and your appearance. And so, your entire worth is based in what clothes you’re wearing and if you have the cool backpack.”

She recalled how much time she invested in finding the right things that were cool for school.

“And looking back on that now, that doesn’t matter. But it feels like it matters so much in the moment,” Blanchard said.  “All these things that are so stupid in retrospect but [in the moment] feel like the most important thing in the world.”

I was impressed with her maturity and candidness. While she spoke to us she rubbed her arms and said she was nervous because she had never met Oprah and she was so nervous. And she confessed she has to remind herself to be a warrior every day.

“It’s not something that is a very conscious thing where I feel totally empowered and fearless every day,” Blanchard admitted. “There are some areas that I feel more confident and then others. Going off on that panel with Oprah, Reese and Mindy, I felt like the odd one out. I will tell you guys the truth. But like, that’s a second where I have to be like, ‘I deserve to be here and like, I’m here, a part of something bigger than myself.'”

She said there are so many moments every day where she has to remind herself that she deserves to be in the room.

Disney

For more on our interview with Rowan Blanchard just search #WrinkleinTimeEvent on Twitter and you’ll see many more perspectives. And in case you are totally in the dark about A Wrinkle in Time, here’s a bit to get you up to speed:

Visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.

Meg Murry is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who just wants to fit in. The daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is Meg’s younger brother, Charles Wallace, but she has yet to realize it for herself. Complicating matters is the mysterious disappearance of Mr. Murry, which has left Meg devastated and her mother broken-hearted. Charles Wallace introduces Meg and her fellow classmate Calvin to three celestial beings (Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who) who have journeyed to Earth to help search for their father, and together they embark on their formidable quest. Traveling via a wrinkling of time and space known as tessering, they are transported to worlds beyond their imagination where they must confront a powerful evil force. To make it back home to Earth, Meg must face the darkness within herself in order to harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness rapidly enveloping the Universe.

Directed by Oscar® nominee Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Oscar winner Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, “A Wrinkle in Time” stars: two-time Academy Award® nominee

Oprah Winfrey as Mrs. Which, Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon as Mrs. Whatsit, Emmy® nominee Mindy Kaling as Mrs. Who, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Mrs. Murry, Michael Peňa as Red and introducing Storm Reid as Meg Murry, with two-time Emmy winner Zach Galifianakis as The Happy Medium and Emmy nominee Chris Pine as Mr. Murry.

“A Wrinkle in Time” opened nationwide on March 9, 2018. [You can read our Wrinkle in Time kid’s review here.]

I adore a beautiful passion story. That’s exactly what came through during our interview with Gugu Mbatha-Raw during Disney’s A Wrinkle in Time. I loved her in the movie “Belle” and I adored her part in Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time” as well.

I’ve usually got my emotions locked down pretty tight but maybe it’s the pregnancy hormones, or maybe it was just that good, but there’s a scene with Mbatha at the end of the film that has brought me to tears twice in a row.

During our interview we spoke about everything from the film to hobbies to fragrances, and big dreams.

She said something she loved about the film was all of the great lines about being yourself.

Gugu Mbatha-Raw (“Dr. Kate Murry”): via Louise Manning Bishop / MomStart.com“I think Oprah has the line you know all you have to do is find the right frequency and be who you are,” Mbatha said. “And I was like, that’s the key to life, isn’t it? Just find the right frequency. Find your tribe. Find your purpose. Find the thing that sets you alight and you know your frequency, your vibe and then just do that, do you, be authentic.”

There were some pivotal moments in her childhood that made her realize she really wanted to follow her passions.

“My mom was a nurse,” Mbatha said. “She was a single parent. She worked full-time. She didn’t enjoy her job. I would see her come home from work really tired. And you know I remember thinking quite clearly when I was about 11, I was like ‘okay, I’m going to do a job that I love because I can see that this is wearing on my mom.”

She knew it was a sacrifice on her mom’s part for her, but it inspired her to follow her dreams. “If I get the chance I’m going to do what I love,” she decided. “So I made my hobby my job basically.”

DisneyIn case you are totally in the dark about A Wrinkle in Time, here’s a bit to get you up to speed:

Visionary director Ava DuVernay comes Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an epic adventure based on Madeleine L’Engle’s timeless classic which takes audiences across dimensions of time and space, examining the nature of darkness versus light and, ultimately, the triumph of love. Through one girl’s transformative journey led by three celestial guides, we discover that strength comes from embracing one’s individuality and that the best way to triumph over fear is to travel by one’s own light.

Meg Murry is a typical middle school student struggling with issues of self-worth who just wants to fit in. The daughter of two world-renowned physicists, she is intelligent and uniquely gifted, as is Meg’s younger brother, Charles Wallace, but she has yet to realize it for herself. Complicating matters is the mysterious disappearance of Mr. Murry, which has left Meg devastated and her mother broken-hearted. Charles Wallace introduces Meg and her fellow classmate Calvin to three celestial beings (Mrs. Which, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who) who have journeyed to Earth to help search for their father, and together they embark on their formidable quest. Traveling via a wrinkling of time and space known as tessering, they are transported to worlds beyond their imagination where they must confront a powerful evil force. To make it back home to Earth, Meg must face the darkness within herself in order to harness the strength necessary to defeat the darkness rapidly enveloping the Universe.

Directed by Oscar® nominee Ava DuVernay from a screenplay by Oscar winner Jennifer Lee based upon the beloved novel by Madeleine L’Engle, “A Wrinkle in Time” stars: two-time Academy Award® nominee

Oprah Winfrey as Mrs. Which, Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon as Mrs. Whatsit, Emmy® nominee Mindy Kaling as Mrs. Who, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Mrs. Murry, Michael Peňa as Red and introducing Storm Reid as Meg Murry, with two-time Emmy winner Zach Galifianakis as The Happy Medium and Emmy nominee Chris Pine as Mr. Murry.

“A Wrinkle in Time” opened nationwide on March 9, 2018. [You can read our Wrinkle in Time kid’s review here.]

If you know me you know I’m a Disney FANATIC! I don’t think I know anyone who knows and loves Disney as much as I do. My mom owned almost all of the Disney Classic videos when I was growing up, and now I own all of the Classic DVDs AND their sequels (but one). That’s right. Did you know that Mulan 2 was REALLY good? Not nearly as good as the first of course, but WAY better than your average Disney sequel.

Anyway. Some people like the perks of having a “mom blog” because they get free stuff. I don’t care so much about the stuff as I do some of the opportunities. So when I saw that one of my friends got to see Tangled I was like “What?! Where’s Disney and why didn’t they write to ME?!” I’m their biggest fan! And I was so hurt!!

I’ve been anticipating this movie for over a year. I heard it was going to be called “Braided” and I kept calling it that for awhile. I was looking at some of these concept-art pictures and was SO EXCITED. About it.

Luckily, this blogger is a good friend of mine so she got me in touch with her contact and I wrote to him saying “What about MEEEEEE?!!” In so many words. And then they apologized and got me in touch with the people in charge of the Texas screening and there I was last night, Little J in my lap, watching Tangled two weeks before the official release. And let me tell you it was GOOD! SO GOOD! In my opinion it’s the best Disney movie since The Lion King. No joke!

So good in fact that I need to re-do my Disney top 10. In fact, I’ve been re-watching many of them over again these past few months (especially over maternity leave) and there’s a lot of re-working I need to do.

1. The Lion King (1994): Surprise surprise (not really)! I’m not sure this movie will ever be replaced. To this day this movie is amazing to watch. It makes me laugh and cry. It’s got a great message, great music, beautiful artwork. Just amazing!

2. Aladdin (1992): Princess Jasmine, the Genie, and of course Aladdin are characters I fell in love with. I will watch this movie any time I catch it on TV, and it ALWAYS makes me laugh. Even though I’ve seen it a million times, and even though I know it by heart. Some Disney movies have a lull part I want to skip over (like that “Can You Feel the Love Tonight scene in Lion King, or the Be Our Guest scene in Beauty and the Beast) this one doesn’t have one of those scenes for me. I love it from start to finish!

I can’t believe I’m doing this but…

3. Tangled (2010): Yes, Tangled has made my top 3 in Disney movies, and therefore one of my top 3 favorite movies of all time. I’ll have to see it again, and again and again to make sure the excitement of it doesn’t wear off but it really was good. It had me laughing, tearing up, and wanting to jump up and sing. All of the beautiful qualities of Disney Classics, plus my favorite aspect–A love story. But they didn’t skim it over, they really let you get to know the characters and fall in love with each of them. But it’s not too girlie like other princess movies, it has more than enough humor for little boys. It was enchanted like Beauty and the Beast and… Ok, I’ll stop and let you see it.

I was comparing it to my other favorites and I like it more than everything after this, surprisingly. It was that good (to me). I think the biggest reason was because of he humor. Lil’ J had fallen asleep and I tried not to wake her but I still couldn’t help but laugh out loud at so many parts. Music, humor, and plot score higher points with me than the depth of the “message.” Which I think some of these others on my list do a better job of developing and conveying.

 4. Mulan (1998): I know it’s a newer one too, but music is one big thing I love about Disney movies and this one didn’t have a song I dislike. The storyline is great too. The horse in Tangled today reminded me of the one in this movie. I think it’s cute how you see a lot of the same characters cross-appear in Disney movies (or maybe I’m the only one who noticed).

5. Beauty and the Beast (1991): I don’t really need to give this one a description. Everyone loves this movie. Its a classic. Nuf said.

6. Pocahontas (1995): I love this movie. I love the Romeo and Juliet-style romance, and how strong Pocahontas seems as a woman. Great message about nature, and we really sure resurrect this classic seeing as how we’re all “green” focused these days. I’ll always love this movie regardless.

 7. The Little Mermaid (1989): My mom says this was the first movie she and I saw together that I could comprehend, and that must have been why I decided to dress up as a read-headed mermaid with “nude” colored (of course meaning a white shade on my dark skin, but I didn’t care cause I was Ariel!) for Halloween my Kindergarten year. I re-watched this movie recently and wasn’t as captivated as I used to be but it will always be a favorite.

8. Tarzan (1999): My favorite thing about this movie was the music. It also is really just plain hilarious. It’s one of those movies that doesn’t need a “princess” to be good. It’s actually one of Disney’s movies more geared towards boys but I like it just the same.

9. Lady and the Tramp (1955): The oldest Disney movie to make my list, but oh it will always be a good one. Not as many songs as some of the others but oh so cute! I haven’t seen the sequels yet, even though I own them, I need to get on that.

10. Toy Story 3 (2009): I actually liked this one better than the first one. I don’t like many of the Pixar movies as much as the classics (which is why this is the only one on the list) but this one had a sweet message, a great story line, and was hilarious. It’s the only Disney movie I don’t have in my possession at this time but I hope to change that by Christmas!

Honorable Mentions: The Princess and the Frog, Wall-E, Up, Cinderella.

Honestly, I watched Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and Cinderella recently and I fell asleep during them. Could be the sleep deprivation, but I think they just aren’t topping some of these new ones to me!

So there’s a new top 10 Disney Classics list from a Disney critic. I will say one thing I DIDN’T like about last night’s movie and that’s seeing it in 3D. It was not necessary and actually made me a little dizzy. I’d much rather see it again in 2D and just enjoy it!

What’s your Disney Top 10, 5, or 3?

One reason I really really want Spawnie to be a girl is because I really want to watch Disney movies with her. I know boys can like Disney movies too but I’m pretty sure that princesses are move of a girlie thing. But then again there are a bunch with boyish action and stuff. What do you think? Anyone out there have boys who like Disney movies?

I got to see The Princess and the Frog a week early thanks to a perk of my job… Advanced press screening!

While I really did enjoy it, it didn’t break my Disney top 5. I was SO EXCITED to see Disney go back to the hand-drawn characters, the musicals, the singing, dancing and color! Loved that. Loved that the princess was black (now COME ON Disney, make a Hispanic princess!), loved the New Orleans scene (that’s where my dad is from) but it didn’t make me cry from laughing or sadness… It didn’t break or melt my heart like some other Disney movies. I have to admit though.. I think part of it could be because my expectations were SO HIGH (and that I’d been anticipating it for over a year) and part of it could be because *gasp* … I’m not a little girl anymore.

But I can talk about Disney for days! I can out-play ANYONE at Disney Scene It. I’ll stand and correct you when you call “Anastasia,” “All Dogs Go to Heaven” or “Land Before Time” a Disney movie (cause they’re not.. Although I have those too!).I’ve collected 70-something Disney and Disney-Pixar Animated Classics (oh yes, did I mention I have the sequels too?) from Snow White on to Ratatouille. I just need Bolt, Wall-E, Up and I totally missed Meet the Robinsons (I found that one, I do have it! Watched it for the first time, it was great!). I also would LOVE to collect the Pixar short films! Boy will Spawnie have quite a collection… I’ll be HEARTBROKEN if (s)he doesn’t like it.Being the Disney freak that I am, I decided to rank my top ten Disney movies so you can get an idea as to where The Princess and the Frog fits…

10. Princess and the Frog ’09: Not too bad at all, it made my top 10. I’m being kind of generous. But I really could stop smiling at the beautiful characters and their cute accents and the music! My dad is from New Orleans too so I felt a special connection with the people. Aww. Love! Oh… But don’t get surprised like me… This fact ALMOST ruiened the movie for me. When you think of Tiana (the princess) don’t think “Jasmine” think “Belle” or “Cinderella.” There… Not giving too much away 🙂

9. Lady and the Tramp ’55: This is the oldest movie on my list. One of the original classics I LOVED and will always love… In fact, I watched it a few months ago and loved it just as much. Snoop also loves this movie.. I think the dog barking noises are actually real cause he totally likes watching this!

8. Hercules ’97: Loved the colors, love the music, love the love (You’ll see a trend with this). And I also just enjoyed the Greek mythology coming to life!

7. The Little Mermaid ’89: This was the first Disney movie… Or movie period, I can remember seeing and understanding in the theater. I left wanting to be a mermaid and I did become one… For Halloween my Kindergarten year. I had the red wig and all.

6. Beauty and the Beast ’91: I swear this movie was my entertainment for at least an entire summer. I was one of those kids who could watch the same movie over and over and over and love it each and every time. My sister and I would sct out the characters, running around and singing the songs in our basement.

5. Pocahontas ’95: I know… How can this be above #6? Well, this movie to me was inspiring. A brave brown girl stopping a war between two groups of people… Ok, maybe it didn’t exactly go down that way in real life, but I loved the movie nonetheless. Still do, and I love the love connection with John Smith.
4. Mulan ’98: Once again, I know my taste in Disney Classics may be different than other’s but I LOVED Mulan.. Still do. Mushu was hilarious, Mulan was so pretty, loved her singing.. Loved ALL of the songs! I can put that movie in today and still die laughing through it. it’s also very touching and has a good message.

3. Tarzan ’99: This one is about a tie with Mulan. I LOVE the music in Tarzan probably more than any other Disney movie, however there’s one song I hate so much I almost want to fast forward through it. I love the mother-son connection though, and I like that little boys could like it too. It also makes me tear up!! LOVE this movie.

2. Aladdin ’92: Who doesn’t like this movie? It was on TV a few weeks ago and my husband actually watched it with me. I have this entire movie memorized, love the music, love the humor, love the love! And can’t I have a genie?!

And no surprise to many # 1. The Lion King ’94: This I think will forever be my favorite Disney movie. I will be SO HAPPY if Disney can one day top this but I’m not sure that’s possible. The gut-wrenching plot was enough to bring me to tears time and time again before I was 10 (why do they do that to kids?) and time and time again even today (but it could be the hormones). I can recite this entire movie no problem.The 3-5th grade I had an entire collection of Lion King attire… Clothing, book bag, lunch box, toys. I don’t know how many times we went to Burger King for those collectible cards and figurines. I was obsessed… And obviously still am.

Honorable mentions: Wall-E, Finding Nemo, The Emperors New Groove.

I’m hoping Disney movies are fun for babies to watch cause I’m already envisioning Fantasia lullabying Spawnie to sleep.

What are your favorite Disney movies?

Now that I have movies squared away though I think I’m on to books. Good children’s book recommendations?

PS: I Promise my next post will be about Snoop knowing I’m pregnant, a few people have asked me about that!