From Our Family to Yours 2021

Disney has done it again... This morning, the mouse debuted the new 2021 Disney Holiday Short video in their daily email from Shop Disney.  Once again, it broke me.

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Like last year, the "From Our Family to Yours" video promotion was made to partner with Make a Wish.  Proceeds from the merchandise that Disney has created to match the video will go to the Make a Wish Foundation.

This year, the story continues with a grown up Nicole- the granddaughter of Lola from the 2020 short.  (You can see pictures of Lola and last year's Mickey plush in the video screenshot above.)  Nicole and her two children, Max and Ella, are welcoming Mike and his dog into the family home as he takes on his new role of stepdad.  The story is centered around him joining the family and with them sharing traditions.

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At the heart of the short is a special storybook that was given to Max from his birth father.  The book celebrates the magic of storytelling.  As the family reads together, the characters come to life and spring off the page.  The figure skating Minnie (pictured at the top of this post) is one of the images in the book that comes to life.  (I wish they had made the matching Mickey Mouse plush to go with her!)

This video is beautiful and it's clear that so much love was put into the animation.  My favorite part is how the story continues from last year's video.  I also love how many Easter eggs they tucked into the short.  The kids are making a Make A Wish puzzle on the table.  There are hidden Mickeys everywhere.  The lamp in the bedroom has Andy's cloud wallpaper and Trixie (the dinosaur) is on the wall.  The kids play with lightsabers and there are Disney plush toys scattered throughout the short. 

The animation was stunning but the music is what finally broke me.  The song "Love Runs Deeper" tells the story through Mike's eyes.  The song is sung by Grammy winner Gregory Porter and is available to download.  For every download before December 31st, 100% of the proceeds will be donated to Make-A-Wish International.

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I read an article stating that there would be over 200 retailers and brands supporting Disney's "From Our Family to Yours" 2021 campaign.  Pandora, Primark and more will also have their own animated stories featuring Nicole, Mike, Max and Ella being released on their channels throughout the month of November.  I hope this means there will be more merchandise (plush Mickey?) and more ways to help Make A Wish.

Not gonna lie, this video really pulled at my heartstrings.  It didn't completely knock me on my butt like last year's video, but it definitely produced tears.  If these short videos are going to become an annual thing, I clearly need to invest in more Kleenex.  °o°