#Disney Side @ Home Celebration - The Big Reveal

We received free products, including the celebration kit, from Disney Parks and Mom Select in order to host the #DisneySide @Home Celebration. The opinions expressed here are our own.

Our Home is Where the Mouse is family was over the moon excited to learn that we had been selected to host a #DisneySide @Home Celebration! If you read my #DisneySide post then you know how much I love to show my #DisneySide through parties.

Yesterday we received our #DisneySide @ Home Celebration party kit! The organizers and sponsors of this event  have provided the hosts/hostesses with all the tools to inspire our magical celebration. We shot a little video to give you a tour of what was in our party kit.



We'd like to thank Disney Parks, Mom Select, American Tourister, HP and Craisins for their generous donations to our @Home Party Kit! For more information about planning your own #DisneySide @ Home Celebration visit http://www.disneysidecelebrations.com/

Wordless Wednesday - Parades!

This week's theme: Parades!

Sometimes the best Parades are the smallest ones. 

Special Thanks to Deb at "Focused on the Magic" for hosting the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.  If you've hopped here, please feel free to look around, Like us, Follow us, Email us, or Subscribe to us.  Then be sure to use the link above to return to the blog hop and check out the other great blogs participating.  Thanks!

Epcot Flower and Garden Festival- Spring is Almost Here!

Spring will be here before we know it. When I think of Spring, the first thing I think about (besides the warm weather) is the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival. Every year, Disney works its magic to transform Epcot into a celebration of Spring!

We've been to the Flower and Garden festival twice, and we can tell you from personal experience that it is a sight to behold. Unfortunately, we were unable to make it this past year, so we took our readers on a virtual tour. You can read all about it by following these three links.

• Epcot Flower and Garden Virtual Tour Part 1 
• Epcot Flower and Garden Virtual Tour Part 2
• Epcot Flower and Garden Virtual Tour Part 3

This year we will actually get to see the festival in real life. We are so excited to see the festival in full bloom and to take part in all the new additions. If you're planning a trip to Walt Disney World between March 5th and May 8th, here are all the festivities that you have to look forward to.

Topiaries

For me, the best part of any Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival we've been to, has been the amazing topiaries that could be found all over the park. I love how the characters are magically brought to life using all natural materials. They are absolutely breathtaking. Rumor has it we may see some Muppet topiaries this year. I'm still holding out hope that the characters from Frozen will make their debut this year.

Outdoor Kitchens

The biggest addition to the festival last year was the introduction of the food carts or Outdoor Kitchens as they're called. Kiosks are set up throughout the park that allow guest to sample a variety of garden fresh flavors from around the world. One of the most popular dishes last year was the Frushi (fruit sushi) from the Hanami outdoor kitchen. We even tried to replicate it at home. Find out how here.

HGTV Designers and Personalities

Various personalities from HGTV and DIY Network will visit the festival to give guests tips on how to make their homes spring ready. You can find a schedule of who will be presenting when.here.

Flower Power Concert Series

The American Gardens Theater, located in the American Adventure Pavilion, is home to The Flower Power Concert Series. Musical acts from the 60s to the 80s are featured throughout the festival. Here is this year's line up as published in the Orlando Sentinel.

March 7-9 -- The Guess Who

March 14-16 -- Gary Lewis & The Playboys

March 21-23 -- The Orchestra Starring Former Members of ELO

March 28-30 -- The Lovin' Spoonful

April 4-6 -- Paul Revere & The Raiders

April 11-13 -- The Village People

April 18-20 -- The Grass Roots

April 25-27 -- Herman's Hermits Starring Peter Noone

May 2-4 -- Starship starring Mickey Thomas

May 9-11 -- Chubby Checker & The Wildcats

May 16-18 -- Alan Parsons Live Project

Festival Center

This is the place for all things flower and garden. Here you will see exhibits, attend workshops and get expert pointers. Don't forget to pick up your passport here so you can get it stamped along the way.

Fun for Kids

The Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival is not just for adults. Each year, the festival creates a festive and interactive play area for kids. Last years was based on the movie "Oz: The Great and Powerful. Tink's Butterfly Garden and Cars Interactive play area will be returning this year for the kids to enjoy.

Be sure to check back for more updates and information on the festival. Will you be enjoying the Flower and Garden Festival this year? 

Foodie Friday- The Master's Cupcake from Be Our Guest

Today is my birthday! Yay! 

Let's celebrate with some cupcakes!

We recently had the opportunity to have lunch at Be Our Guest. You can read about that experience here. This meal was used as an early birthday celebration for me. While the meal itself was good, I have to say the best part was dessert. Each person in our family tried a different cupcake. For my birthday, I treated myself to The Master's Cupcake. 

If you are a fan of the Grey Stuff, then you will love The Master's Cupcake. This delicious cupcake is basically Chocolate Sponge Cake topped with Lumiere’s special “Grey Stuff”. The cake was moist and rich. The Grey Stuff ( a cookies and cream whipped panna cotta) was sweet and creamy and made its way into the center of the cupcake. The cupcake was topped with crunchy edible pearls and a piece of thin dark chocolate.  Yum! Put it all together and you have a very sweet and very satisfying end of meal treat. 

If you are a chocolate lover like me then I highly suggest The Master's Cupcake (aka The Grey Stuff Cupcake). It's delicious.

The Master's Cupcake is $3.19 or 1 snack credit at Be Our Guest lunch.

This post is part of the Favorite Foodie Friday blog hop, hosted by Disney Day by Day!  If you love Disney food, then use the link to check it out!

The "Be Our Guest" Lunch Experience

The lunch lines for Be Our Guest Restaurant in Magic Kingdom form early and can get quite long.  It's certainly popular, but is it worth the wait?  We were determined to try it out for ourselves.  Here's what we thought of the experience.

As soon as we planned this trip, it was decided we wanted to try and eat lunch at Be Our Guest to celebrate Lisa and Bella's birthdays.  We had eaten dinner here last summer to celebrate our anniversary and absolutely loved it!  

We knew that the line for lunch formed early, and that waits could be long.  But we'd also heard that it was possible to get a FastPass+ reservation for lunch.

At 60 days out, we were emailed about logging in to make our FastPass+ reservations.  To our disappointment, Lunch at BOG was not something you could select.

So how were all these people getting these lunch "reservations"??

I did some searching and found out that Be Our Guest was using a separate reservation system.  This system was reportedly by invitation only, but if you had the link, you could attempt to log in and reserve a lunch time for your trip.

I logged in and went through the prompts, only to be told there was no availability for the date I wanted.  I read online that the availability is sometimes not available until only a couple of weeks before your trip, so I tried again, and again... with no luck.  The holidays came and distracted me, and then we were just a week before our trip, and I remembered to check again...

BINGO!!

I was in!! 

An example of the time slot selection page for BOG FP+ Lunch

Our reservation was made, and I printed the confirmation screen as a backup.  On our Magic Kingdom day, we headed over for lunch and sure enough there were two lines.

One for FastPass+ and one for Stand-By...  We waited on a short line, and checked in with the CM at the booth for FP+.  She confirmed our reservation, and we proceeded over the bridge, bypassing the line and went directly into the hall with all the suits of armor.

There were menus here to browse as the line moved through the room and into the library, where you were asked how you were paying (room charge, dining plan, etc) and directed to either a kiosk or a live CM to place your order.

For lunch the Library is used for ordering.  At Dinner, it becomes the Beast Meet and Greet.

Once our order was placed, we were told to "find any table we liked, have a seat, place the receipt on the table, and our food would be brought to us."

We chose a table in the Rose Room.  The room is decorated with paintings all around on the wall, and in the center is a rotating music box figurine of Belle and the Beast dancing together in their Ballroom attire.

We wondered how they would find us.  I thought we were supposed to be given a magical rose which they would home in on... but then we realized that we were each carrying "magic" with us.... our Magic Bands! We surmised that the roses and bands utilize the same technology, so only guests without Magic Bands need a rose.

Disney stalked us successfully and delivered the food to our table, confirming the order against our receipt. It took a while to get our food, but not overly long.

I had the Croque Monsieur - Grilled sandwich of carved ham, Gruyere cheese, and bechamel with Pommes Frites. $11.19

Lisa had the Vegetable Quiche - mushroom, zucchini, bell pepper, onion, and chive quiche; served with baby lettuce coated with Champagne vinaigrette $8.99

We got Jackson the Macaroni Maurice
Whole-Grain Macaroni with Marinara Sauce and Mozzarella served with Seasonal Vegetables6.99

Bella got the Mickey Meatloaf
Turkey Meatloaf with Broccoli Florets and Zucchini served with Orange "Stuff" for Dipping. $8.49

The food was okay.  Lisa's quiche left her wanting more vegetables in it, as most of it was just egg.  My sandwich was good, just nothing I would go out of my way to have again.  The kids' meals were small.  At least Bella's came with 2 vegetables.  Jackson's "seasonal vegetables" were two pieces of broccoli.

The only thing that won high praise was the "orange stuff" in Bella's meal.  We all tried it and thought it was delicious.


We also ordered dessert.  We placed that order at the same time as our lunch, and it arrived along with all the other food, sitting there on the table and taunting us as we tried to focus on our lunch.

Jackson and I shared a Triple Chocolate Cupcake - chocolate sponge cake, chocolate mousse filling, and choclate ganache $3.19  I had eaten one when we had dinner here last summer, so I knew it was good.

Bella chose the Strawberry Cream Cheese Cupcake - vanilla sponge cake, strawberry mousse filling, and cream cheese icing $3.19  It looked amazing and she said it was delicious.

Lisa got the The Master's Cupcake - Chocolate Sponge Cake topped with Lumiere’s special “Grey Stuff” $3.19

She said it was sinful, and she didn't share it with us, so we have to take her word for it.

Overall, it was a nice way to celebrate the birthdays of our 2 special girls.  The atmosphere of Be Our Guest is absolutely amazing!  I think from now on we'll be going for dinner to get the whole experience though!

Have you eaten at Be Our Guest?  Do you prefer their Lunch or Dinner Experience?

Disney Movie Collection Giveaway

Beat the winter blues and snuggle up with a great Disney movie...or 19!

We've teamed up with an amazing group of bloggers and pages to bring you this Disney Movie Collection Giveaway! One winner will receive 19 Disney movies! Here's a glimpse at what you'll receive.

The Little Mermaid- Love Our Disney

Toy story 3 -Peace Love Disney

The Incredibles - Disney with Dana

Cinderella - The Benson Street

Monster's University- Home is Where the Mouse is

Brave - Temporary Tourist (w/ Homeketeers & a Party Printable Set)

Babe's in Toyland - Homeketeers

Lady and the Tramp - Your Magical Vacation

A Bug's Life - Fearlessly Creative Mammas

Muppet Treasure Island and Great Muppet Caper (release 12/10/2013) - Disney Film Project Podcast

Wall-E - The Disney World Files/Magical Moments Vacations by Carra Saigh

Wreck It Ralph-Disney With Babies Toddlers & Preschoolers

Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland-  Disney Obsession

Iron Man 3- Rarely Tidy

Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue - MousekaTools

Aladdin-DisneyDose.com

Tinker Bell DVD- Started with a Mouse

Mary Poppins 40th Anniversary 2 disc set  - Dragondreamer's Lair

Disney 4-Movie Collection: Herbie (Love Bug/Herbie Goes Bananas/Herbie Goes To Monte Carlo/Herbie Rides Again) - On the Go in MCO

Add  popcorn and some candy and you are all set for a movie marathon. And be on the lookout for some great movie night ideas to go along with our movie, Monster's University.

Enter via the Rafflecopter below and don't forget to read the fine print!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Fine Print
Winner must be a US Resident 18 years or Older
Winner will be notified by email and will have 24 hours to respond to claim their prize or another winner may be chosen.
Movies will be sent individually from each blog sponsor. Winner's address will be shared with all blog sponsors (18). If winner does not agree to have his/her address shared with all sponsors, another winner will be chosen.

Wordless Wednesday - The Disney Letter "S"

This week's theme: The Letter "S"

Disney Security

While scrolling through my pictures looking for "S" shots for this week, I came across this pic that I just took this past weekend.  This is a Disney Security Guard checking bags at the entrance to Magic Kingdom. 

These Cast Members are some of the very first you encounter at the parks.  As guests, we too often regard them with annoyance at having to stop and waste our precious park time to have our bag inspected.  We get more annoyed if they are being too thorough in their duties, making us wait longer.  We may even feel that they are violating our privacy when they look into our bags and see what personal items we have stowed in there.  It's a thankless job these men and women do, yet they do it with a smile.

These moments we "waste" waiting to pass through security should be a time to reflect on one of the reasons we keep going back to Disney year after year.  Where else in the world can we go where we feel so safe??  

And it's not because we feel like these men and women are hovering over us, watching our every move like hawks.  In reality, the security bag check is often the only interaction most guests will have with Disney Security.  Yet this is only one layer of Disney's security system. The vast security network throughout the parks and resorts is largely unnoticed, and I think we all prefer it that way, right?



So the next time you pass through a bag check to enter the parks, give Cast Members like a Nathan a smile, and a "thank you."  It's the very least we can do for all they do for us.

Special Thanks to Deb at "Focused on the Magic" for hosting the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.  If you've hopped here, please feel free to look around, Like us, Follow us, Email us, or Subscribe to us.  Then be sure to use the link above to return to the blog hop and check out the other great blogs participating.  Thanks!