4 Elements For Hosting The Perfect #DisneySide Party

Disclosure: I received free products in order to host a Disney Side @Home Celebration.  The opinions expressed here are my own.

Does your family love Disney?  Planning a trip a Disney theme park?  Why not celebrate and show off your Disney Side by hosting a party?!!  We did!  This past weekend we took a break from planning our first trip to Disney World to unwind, let our hair down and party.  And today, I'm sharing 4 elements that you can use to make sure your own Disney Side party is pure perfection.

Decor

You can't have a Disney Side party without Disney themed decorations.  Our party was Mickey Mouse Clubhouse themed, which is perfect if you have a girl and a boy like me.  And you don't have to go all out.  We kept our decorations simple using themed a tablecloth, cupcake/treat holder, plates, cups and napkins.  From the ceiling we hung Mickey Mouse foil swirlers.

We didn't have to go all out with balloons and streamers.  Simple was definitely more for us.  While our kit was provided by Disney, you can pick up the items used from Walmart or a local party supply store like Party City.  I checked and both definitely carry the tablecloth, cups, plates and napkins.  And the prices are very reasonable.  None of our decorations are over $6. 

Entertainment

What's a party without entertainment?  You don't want to let your guests get bored.  It's a celebration, remember?  For our party we had games, dancing and movies.  You can find card games like Snaps and Go Fish that are Disney themed.  I'd check the Dollar Tree and Walmart for the ones in my area carry them.  Also, don't forget to check the official Disney Store if you have one in your area.

We have satellite radio and streamed Radio Disney for tunes to dance to.  You can also check out official Disney playlists on Spotify or check out the Disney Music VEVO channel on YouTube for free tunes.  For movies, you could always see if your cable company offers Disney OnDemand and let's not forget Redbox.  For a $1 each you can rent one or two of your family's favorite movies like Frozen or The Princess and the Frog.

Again, you don't have to spend a ton on entertainment.  Just make sure that whatever games, movies and music you choose it's age appropriate for the majority of your younger guests.

Favors

I was always raised that you don't throw a party without giving guests some sort of favor or take home gift.  For our party favors we created mini treat baskets.  We put in Mickey Mouse temporary tattoos, stickers, and pencils.  You make each basket gender specific by adding additional things like nail polish for girls (like the ones below) and cars for boys.

Again no need to break the bank on favors.  Walmart and the Dollar tree are my friends and will be yours too!  Keep favors simple and age appropriate.

Food

If you're planning on inviting outside family and friends be sure to get a list of everyone's food allergies.  Luckily for us, my kiddies are the only ones with food allergies.  So, it was easy for me to tailor our menu to their needs.  Again we kept it simple with fries and homemade chicken nuggets.

Also when you're planning your menu make sure that you have more finger foods than foods that require utensils.  Finger foods are a lot more kid friendly and will often times be less expensive.  Don't forget about dessert!  Whether it's fruit or cupcakes be sure to treat your guest a sweet treat.

So, what are you waiting for?  Now that you know what you need to throw your own Disney Side celebration, get to planning.  Remember, we don't need wait for special occasions to celebrate the simple joys in life.  Seize the moment and make the memories!

What is your or your child's favorite Disney character?

#DisneySide @Home Celebration Kit Unboxing

Disclosure: I received free products in order to host a Disney Side @Home Celebration.  The opinions expressed here are my own.

I was in junior high when we first got satellite television.  Up until that point, my television sessions were non-existent with the exception of Disney movies.  My mom was and still is a die hard Disney fan.  The Lion King is her all-time favorite Disney movie.  She even got a chance to catch the musical at Disney World one year when she chaperoned my baby brother's band trip.

So, it was no shocker that when we got our satellite we were only allowed to watch three things: the Disney Channel, the news and Oprah!  For the most part we stuck to this rule; occasionally we watched things that we weren't supposed to because our peers were watching it, but not often.  I remember falling in love with shows like The Famous Jett Jackson (RIP to Lee Thompson Young), Lizzie Mcguire, and being introduced to a mischievous and bothersome Shia LaBeouf, who played the role of Louis Stevens on Even Stevens.  He's definitely come into his looks since then, but I digress.

I remember enjoying cartoons like PB & J Otter, JoJo's Circus and more with my baby sister who was just starting elementary school.  No longer feeling like we were missing out on all of the IT tv shows for teens made me feel like I was finally part of the In crowd.  My mom was a single parent and so cable and satellite tv were out of her budget for a while, but we definitely appreciated her getting it for us once we could afford it.  Whenever Disney would advertise casting calls, she would always encourage me or one of my siblings to try out, but we were too shy and unsure of our talents back then. 

Here I am years later with two kids of my own and I'm proud to say they both love Disney just as much if not more than my siblings and I do and did when we were their ages.  I'm honored to have seen and celebrate the creation of the first African American Disney Princess, Princess Tiana from The Princess & the Frog.  I'm even more excited that I have my first opportunity to partner with Disney via Disney Parks and MomSelect by hosting a Disney Side @Home Celebration!  Moo's eyes about popped out of her head when I told her we had a package from Disney coming.

Looking back, I'm kind of wishing I had waited until it arrived to tell her.  Okay not really, but she asked about it EVERYDAY.  The first words out of her mouth in the mornings would be, "Is my Disney package coming today?"  When I picked her up from school she would ask, "Did the Disney package come?"  And during our nightly family prayer when I'd ask if she had anything she wanted to pray for she would respond with , "Lord, help our Disney package hurry up and get here." LOL.

Seeing her excitement and joy over us getting the chance to do something special like a Disney Side @Home Celebration has been refreshing and magical for me.  I can only imagine this is the same excitement I exuded to my mom when I was younger and got excited about receiving or getting to watch the latest Disney movie.  I had the biggest obsession with Pocahontas and went nuts when my mom was able to get my the braiding Pocahontas doll for Christmas after the movie came out.  I cherished that doll and played with it for years until my little brother chewed one of her hands off and then broke off her head. 

We were selected for the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse multigeneration kit, which is great since JJ loves Mickey and Moo and loves Minnie and Daisy.  Our kit came with the following goodies:

• Disney Side invitations
• Mickey Mouse Clubhouse cups, napkins, plates, tablecloth and decorations
• Minnie Mouse and Daisy snack supplies
• Disney party favors: stickers, pencils, Mickey Mouse tattoos, and information packs with luggage tags for the adults
• Disney themed activity sheets: Bingo, trivia cards, word search puzzles and more
• Mickey Mouse cake mold
• Duff Goldman Tie Dye cake mix and sprinkles
• HP Create Memories You Keep Packs
• Snuggle Fabric softner (sample size)
• All Mighty Pacs (full size)
• Wisk laundry detergent (sample size)
• Two Disney Princess Palace Pets toys
• Disney Princess nail polish set (18-count)
• Coupons
• Disney Vacation Planning DVD

Moo with her faves from our kit

Do I even have to tell y'all what Moo's favorites from our kit are?  I think the picture above says it all.  She's in love with Nuzzles and Matey.  I haven't let her crack into the nail polish yet since we're saving that to do our nails with the day of our party.  JJ's favorites have been the stickers, pencils and huge Pin-the-Smile-on-the-Mickey cutout. 

My favorite is the cake mold because I can use it for parties for years to come.  And I'm ready to try out the Duff's Tie Dye cake mix.  I heard it tastes really good.  The Mr and I will enjoy that since it's not gluten-free.  We've decided to host our party next month and have decided on a Family Togetherness Day theme filled with family, food, games, Disney movies and of course talking about our upcoming Disney World trip.

Be sure to check out our kit unboxing video below.  And yes, I know that my head is half out of the frame for most of the video.  We filmed it at 1 AM and this tired mommy meant to move the camera back, but I went to check on JJ and then forgot to move it when I came back.  You still get a full view of Moo, who served as my lovely assistant!  Also, drop by The Best Crowe's Nest and check out my friend, Kelley's Disney Side @Home Celebration Box Reveal.

Do you or your child have a favorite Disney character/show?

Thankful Thursday

"Everyday is a new beginning, take a deep breath and start again."

~ @Oprah_World, Twitter

Good day YUMMs!  Happy Thankful Thursday.  Definitely giving thanks for new beginnings.   I've really been working hard to allow each day to be its own blank slate and not rolling over issues and negative energy from the day before.  And yes, taking a deep breath does help.

I'm thankful that Moo has officially recovered from her flu!!  However, she did get a stomach virus on Monday.  Tuesday night was the roughest.  Let's just say our carpet got some special cleaning attention.  But she's back on the mends again.  

Stomach bugs are always short lived.  I'm giving thanks that JJ didn't catch her flu or stomach bug!  One sick child is handful enough for me.  The Mr and I have made sure to remind Moo more frequently to wash her hands at school and ask her teacher for sanitizer often.  Her poor immune system has taken so much of a beating since she's started school.  She's literally been sick almost every other week.

She's a trooper though and has handled it all with grace.  I know God has been and will continue to look out for her.  We're hoping to get through 2015 without any trips to ER or stays in the hospital.  We had a close call with her flu and asthma last week, but again, God came through.

I had a package from a sponsor get lost in the mail last week and I am grateful that they were awesome and offered to ship me a new one.  It arrived Tuesday and I can't wait to share what it is with y'all.  Earlier this month, I announced that I had been selected to host a #DisneySide @Home Celebration.  Well, it's been such an awesome and exciting experience connecting with other bloggers through this project.

The support and love that my fellow #DisneySide hosts and hostesses have been displaying in our Facebook group, on social media and each other's blogs and vlogs is so inspiring and motivating.  I'm so grateful to Disney, Disney Parks and MomSelect for bringing us together.  I definitely feel like I've made a few more blogger friends and look forward to getting to know everyone more.  Be sure to follow the #DisneySide hashtag on social media to see how we're showing our love of Disney and Disney Parks and how that love is allowing us to bond with our families and friends.

JJ has officially graduated to using sentence fragments and two word phrases!!  I'm super excited and proud of his progress.  We actually went to the library this morning and picked out some books.  I read to them every night and we do his flashcards, but now I'm ready to get him started trying to read to me and Moo.  My goal is to start slow with getting him to read one page a night using the repeat after me method.  Then a month from now, we'll increase to two pages and so forth until he can read at least five pages in one setting.

I'm also thankful that JJ's fourth birthday is coming up.  That means I'm getting closer to starting my TTC journey for baby 3!  There is a small to do list that we still have knock out to make sure we're fully prepared for a third child like buying second car that is family friendly and has a lot of trunk space, but isn't an uber gas hog.  I'm thinking a hybrid suv will be a good fit for us.  If anyone has any recommendations on a great one leave it below.

And as always, I'm grateful for those who continue to support this blog.  Thanks for reading and sharing.

What are you showing gratitude for this week?