Prepping for Disney: Animal Kingdom Must Watch Movies

For those of you following along from home, you might have seen my last post about the week's worth of movies you should watch before visiting Magic Kingdom. Of all of the parks, that one was probably the easiest in terms of available material, but also the hardest because there are just so many movies.

On the flip-side of that, Animal Kingdom is one that I found tough. Unlike most of the other parks, there are only a small handful of rides and shows based directly off of movies. A lot of it is pure atmosphere. But, I did my best, and here is my list of the top seven movies you should check out before heading to Animal Kingdom.

Photo by pallndrome6996

The Lion King - There are so many great tie-ins to the Lion King at Animal Kingdom, the most obvious of which being the "Festival of the Lion King" show. It is always one of my favorites, especially with the aerial ballet and acrobatics. 

Photo by ckramer

Finding Nemo - Another great show at Animal Kingdom is "Finding Nemo: The Musical." It really showcases Disney's ability to blend puppeteering and real people together (a la Lion King on Broadway) and makes for a really fun show. Plus, the movie is one of my all-time favorites. You'll see it make the list again in Epcot with the Living Seas area. 

Photo by Jeremy Thompson

A Bug's Life - I'll be honest, this movie wasn't my favorite and I never liked "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" in Epcot, so "It's Tough to be a Bug" just isn't up my alley. But, it is still a big part of the park, and it is a foundational Pixar movie, so you should definitely add this one to your list.  

Photo by HarshLight

Dinosaur - This ride is a little intense for me (hey, I get scared!) but the theming expands even beyond the movie. The entirety of "DinoLand" is a lot of fun, and I've always enjoyed it. Like most of Disney, everything from the restaurants to the shops to the kids activities are on point. This sign above is one of my favorites!

Photo by Sam Howzit

Avatar - With the soon to open Avatar Land, this one is a must watch. I'm curious to see what the reaction to the park will be as I'm not sure the movie itself has had the lasting impression that other newly announced themed lands have had (Toy Story, Star Wars) but with the new changes to MK this is an important film!

Photo by erin leigh mcconnell

Earth & African Cats - I will fully admit that these two are a bit of a cop-out. Once "The Good Dinosaur" and "Zootopia" are released, maybe we can swap those out, but you really can't go wrong with any of the Disney Nature films. There are some gorgeous animals living in the park!

What do you think/? Would these be your top 7 Animal Kingdom movies? What am I missing?

Prepping for Disney: Magic Kingdom Must-Watch Movies

Yesterday was the official one month mark for my upcoming Disney World trip and I thought to myself, hey, I should watch some movies to prep for my trip. And then I thought, I wonder if there's a good list of movies for each park? I found a couple, but none that I thought were really an in-depth breakdown.

Now, I work full-time and try to do regular grownup things like eat and sleep, so I don't think I have quite enough time to watch every park-related movie before the 19th. So, since I've got thirty days and four parks (sorry resorts, water parks, and Downtown/Springs, I'm not even going to bother) I've put together the top seven movies (or shorts) you MUST watch for each park before your Disney World trip. Want my all-inclusive list? I've got that too! I'll start today with Magic Kingdom, but check back for the full list!

What I'm Wearing to Disney

In honor of today being the 60th anniversary of the opening of Disneyland, I thought I'd share with you my outfits for my own upcoming Disney trip next month. Although we're heading to the Florida park, not California, I figure in August there won't be much of a difference between the two. 

My big goals for these outfits was to be comfortable, drawn from things I either already had or could buy without breaking the bank, and to be sneaky about paying homage to a different Disney character. My in-laws flat out laugh at people who wear Disney paraphernalia (why!??!) so I thought this could be my subtle way of still going about it. 

Ready? Alright, here's my starting lineup:

Kim Possible: August 2015 by zerotodisney

Day 1: Travel & Epcot
I want something cool enough to handle being out in the parks, but with the sweater for the plane ride. They've replaced the Kim Possible World Showcase Adventure with Phineas & Ferb, so I'm calling this a throwback.

Buzz Lightyear: August 2015 by zerotodisney

Day Two: Magic Kingdom
Starting off with breakfast, we're spending the majority of the day in my favorite park. Ugh that's tough. Tied for favorite with Epcot. As an homage to one of my family's favorite rides, I've got my Buzz Lightyear of Star Command outfit all ready to go!

Minnie Mouse: August 2015 by zerotodisney

Day Three: Disney Hollywood Studios
When you're talking movies, there are so many options in terms of characters. Do you go Muppets? Indiana Jones? Old Hollywood? I figured since it all started with a man and a mouse, I'd stick with the classics. The mouse's sweetheart (Girlfriend? Wife? They had separate houses in Toon Town...) is about as classic as you get. 

Dory: August 2015 by zerotodisney

Day Four: Animal Kingdom
One of my favorite movies is Finding Nemo, and spending most of the day in Animal Kingdmo (and seeing the Finding Nemo show) makes Dory a good pick. I've also found Animal Kingdom to be the warmest of the parks, so hopefully this will help me stay cool!

Aladdin: August 2015 by zerotodisney featuring a crossbody purse

Day Five: Epcot & Travel
All good things must come to an end. We're spending our last day in Florida running around Epcot, and although the story of Aladdin is NOT set in Morocco, you'll often find the characters there. The World Showcase is one of my favorite places in the whole world, and inspired me to study other cultures and languages so I thought that this outfit would be fitting.

I will definitely try to make sure I get a good photo each day so you can see how it turned out. The shoes may change as we get closer too. I'm eyeing the new Vans line, and might go ahead and grab something there. Or, I'll end up in just regular tennis shoes and pretend like the shoes don't matter to the outfit as a whole.

So what do you think? Do you have a favorite? Which characters inspire your outfits?

All American Surgery Update: Seven Months

Hard not to love my pile of right shoes

My apologies for not posting an update sooner, but this last month has been pretty crazy. Here's a quick recap for those of you new to the blog:

1. On December 4, I had the "All-American Surgery" to basically take my left foot apart and put it back together again after a torn tendon and collapsed arch. Two titanium screws were inserted, one in my heel and one on the outside of my ankle.

2. I worked on recovering, using my awesome iWalk 2.0 to get around. I began doing physical therapy twice a week, and in March my in-laws asked my husband and I if we would join them for a trip to Disney in mid-August.

3. In late April, we started to realize everything wasn't going the way it was supposed to. I was still in a lot of pain, had a lot more redness and swelling than we expected, and, surprise, my screws started to back out of my foot. Turns out I'm one of the 2-4% of the population that isn't just allergic to nickel, but also titanium.

4. On June 15, I had a second (and much quicker) surgery to remove the two screws from my foot.

5. On June 26, my husband and I bought a house! Perfect timing

Alright, all caught up? Read on!

A Few Screws Loose

I won't say too much now because I'm on pain meds and am pretty loopy, but I wanted to update you and let you know that yesterday's surgery was a success and I am home resting.

I'm pretty sore, a little more so than I expected, but am making good use of my iWalk 2.0 around the apartment until I can get everything moving well enough to get into my walking boot. I only thought I'd be out of work for two days but once I came to they said I should take a whole week. My apologies if you follow me on Instagram, this means you'll get a whole bunch of pictures of Mr. Moose during the next seven day. More updates coming soon!

All-American Surgery Update: Six Month Update

First off, I want to apologize for not posting any updates over the last month. I will be 100% honest with you. The last four weeks have been some of the toughest I've ever had.

June is my busiest month of the year at work, my dad is going through a major job transition after working at the same place for 36 years, we're buying a house (yay!) but are having problems with the closing (boo), and on top of all of this it feels like my foot is trying to fall off.

I am really frustrated. My ankle is still red and swollen after even a limited amount of time on my feet. Last weekend we had a major event at my museum, and thank goodness I have amazing volunteers and coworkers because I really had to limit my movement. The above photo is the evening after that event, a day where I took MAYBE 4,000 steps.

This coming Monday, I will have a second surgery, this time to remove the screws from my ankle. When I met with the surgeon last week, he actually speculated that I'm allergic to the titanium screws. I know I have a slight nickel allergy (can't wear cheap earrings) but his guess as to why I'm having so much pain is actually because the upgraded screws still aren't compatible. He's hoping that once we go in and remove them, I'll be back on the road to recovery.

I am pretty anxious about this. Hopefully we pop the screws out and I am back on the road to healing. We're heading to Disney in mid-August, and I want to be able to keep up with my husband and in-laws!

Sorry for the downer post. I wish I had better, happier news to tell you. The plus side here is that I will shortly have a pretty house I can start to make our own, although let me tell you moving in a walking boot is going to be great fun! If anybody has any tips or suggestions on how to manage that, I'm all ears!

All American Surgery Update - Five Months

I will be honest with you, friends and random internet strangers. The last few weeks have been some of the most difficult I can remember. I am so frustrated to be nearly half a year out from the surgery and to be struggling this much, and it is 100% because of the screws in my ankle and heel. Anytime I do much beyond barely walking all day, there is swelling and a lot of discomfort.

That wouldn't be so bad if this wasn't the busiest time of year for me at work combined with what is about to be a very busy time in my personal life. At work it is my favorite season. We have 3-5 school programs each week, with as many as 110 fourth grade students learning and exploring my museum. It is the reason I am in this profession, and there is nothing that makes me happier. Added to that, in June we have 2 major events, plus I'm planning an exhibit, plus a number of smaller events. so there is a lot happening!