D23 Expo- Cool Confusing Chaos

D23 Expo weekend has been crazy, and I'm not even there.  Eliot's been sending me messages throughout his past two days there and I can tell how crazy it is.  There are approximately 65,000 people descending upon Anaheim for the bi-annual event.  A few words to describe my impression from the outside looking in: cool, confusing, chaos.

Photo Source: D23 Expo

The D23 Expo is obviously a huge event for Disney.  They've made huge announcements there over the weekend regarding their theme parks, future movies and other projects.  They release limited edition merchandise exclusive to the event.  They also have displays of tons of Disney memorabilia, historic items, even merchandise from their other theme parks around the world!  It's so cool to go to one location with all of this wealth of magic.

Photo Source: D23 Facebook Page

However, according to Eliot, it's been very confusing and more unorganized than one would expect from Disney.  Disney runs it's theme parks like a well oiled machine.  They have crowd control and traffic patterns down to a science.  D23, it seems has been incredibly confusing in comparison.  Eliot's told me cast members don't know how to give directions.  There is a lack of signage leading you to desired destinations.  It's not what you'd expect from an event coordinated by Disney.

Photo Source: D23 Facebook Page

Leading to my final impression- it seems D23 has been chaos.  Honestly, I do expect some chaos when you're cramming 65,000 into one event, even if the venue is huge.  However, some of this seems like it could have been controlled.  Eliot said they had two doors open yesterday when he was one of the approximately 20,000 people waiting outside to get into the event.  There wasn't water for those people in the hot sun.  There wasn't even water available for sale.  This isn't what Disney is known for.  Disney is top of the line guest services, with water fountains in ride queue lines to make sure guests stay hydrated.

Photo Source: D23 Facebook Page

I've got to say that I'm a little bit disappointed.  After having three of these events prior to this one, I'd think they would have ironed out a few of the kinks.  It seems like there's still plenty of room for improvement, but that won't keep me from attending D23 in the future!  In fact, Eliot and I are already talking about the possibility of D23 in 2017!!!  °o°

Fun Find: Inside Out Emojis

It's time for another Fun Find Friday!!!  Today, we're taking a look at Inside Out Emojis!

Those of you who use Facebook Messenger are probably well aware of the stickers you can send to your friends.  If not, I'm about to blow your mind.  You can "download" stickers to send to others on Facebook.  (Read more about how to do that here.)

A lot of movies have designed stickers to promote their movies.  I've also downloaded stickers from Hunger Games, Minions, Frozen and Disney-Pixar.  However, my newest obsession are the Inside Out emoji stickers.  I've actually had these on my Fun Find list for a while.  They've been available since before the movie was released!

Since the characters in the movie are based on emotions, these are perfect.  Eliot and I use them regularly now.  In fact, we can have entire conversations just in emojis.  Our wallets crying like Sadness seems to be a regular trend.  (Disney, will you stop with all the cool merchandise already?!?!)  I'd also like to note that in both these examples, Eliot's sending me links to cool merchandise.  He's clearly an enabler.

Aren't these fun?  In the second conversation I can picture Eliot rolling his eyes at me like Disgust while I'm saying "you know you love me!"  The best part is that there are multiple images of each character.  Here's what the entire collection looks like.

Image from Facebook

If you like them go download them to your sticker book before they're no longer available!  I've heard that people who didn't already get the Frozen stickers can't get them now!  (Which is a tragedy- ecstatic jumping Olaf is another personal favorite sticker of mine!)  Have fun expressing your thoughts and emotions.  °o°

New IllusionEars for D23

Hi friends!  We've been busy around here as usual.  I find the days flying by without time for me to even think about writing.  I'm holding the fort down while Eliot's away.   He's been home in California all this week.  A good family friend passed away unexpectedly last week and he went out for his memorial service.  Since Eliot was already flying out Thursday for D23 this weekend, he just stayed the entire week!

In the meantime, I've been keeping myself busy.  My friend Shelly's baby shower was this past Sunday.  It was so nice to see my Wentworth girls again!  Lately, I've only seen my college girlfriends once a year and this was really special.  Shelly's sister did a great job with the storybook theme!  I was right in my element with the little Disney touches.  Shelly's niece was stunned when I told her I "borrowed" Cinderella's coach for our wedding.  She was so cute!

The shower was a lot of fun.  I love the cute baby outfits!  Of course, I had to spoil her little one with lots of Minnie Mouse stuff.  We had a great time and it was so good to reconnect with my friends!  Hopefully I'll see them again sooner rather than later!

It was right back to work after the shower.  Since Eliot had to leave early, that left me finishing the new IllusionEars for D23.  Thankfully, Eliot finished the designs before he left.  I've been putting the finishing touches on them and mailed them out earlier today.

Eliot's sisters agreed to be our models for the weekend.  We had them choose their themes- illustrating the sky is the limit when it comes to designs for IllusionEars.  Elissa wanted Inside Out Anger ears and Sara wanted a Lion King design.  Eliot ended up designing Simba ears for her.  They came out pretty cute and they also show off two more design options for our IllusionEars: painted one color or two colors!  (I'm currently working on a set of Disneyland 60th ears for myself with other options.)

If you're at D23 or Disneyland this weekend, keep an eye out for the IllusionEars!!! °o°

Camp Cady- Part 2

Here's the recap of the second half of Elissa's visit with us this summer in Maine!  You can read about the first half of "Camp Cady" here.

Elissa's third weekend was a long one for the 4th of July!  Eliot and I both had Friday off.  Thursday night, we drove up to Bar Harbor for the weekend.  I love Bar Harbor on the 4th of July.  Growing up there, it's sort of a tradition.  Recently, it's been getting publicity as one of America's best small towns for Independence Day.  It was packed.

My family watched the parade from Cottage Street a little farther down than our usual spot.  This was hard as it was the first year without Papa and he loved the 4th in Bar Harbor.  Eliot, Elissa and I watched the parade with my parents, brother Jeremy and Nana.  It was great as usual.  This year, Elissa and I wore some Happily Ever Hatter 4th of July ears.  I really wanted to make some and Elissa agreed that she'd wear them too.  You can take the girls out of Disney, but you can't take the Disney out of the girls!

After the parade, we enjoyed lunch with my family at Epi, another Bar Harbor 4th of July tradition!  It was also on Elissa's food list, so it worked out great.  Next, we all enjoyed relaxing in the park overlooking the water.  I was surprised at how many people were already staking out their spots for the fireworks!

We decided to spend the afternoon elsewhere since town was so crowded.  I've been wanting to take Eliot to the Bass Harbor Headlight for a while now.  (I haven't been since I was in middle school.)  So Eliot, Elissa, Jeremy and I drove out there.  It's on the other side of the island, but it's well worth the trip.  It was beautiful.  We relaxed by the lighthouse, sat on the rocks overlooking the ocean, and soaked in the natural beauty of Acadia National Park and the Maine coastline.

After that, we stopped for a little while at the sea wall we passed on the way over.  It's a small beachy area that's filled with round rocks.  We thought Elissa might enjoy looking at the tide pools.  We played around there for a bit.  Eliot and I even spotted a hidden Mickey formation in some rocks!

That night, we headed back into town for the fireworks.  Dad, Eliot, Elissa, Jeremy and I ate dinner at the Epi.  (What can I say?  The food is great!)  We made it to our no longer secret spot just in time for the fireworks!  They were awesome.  For a small town, Bar Harbor sure puts on one heck of a show.  The area surrounding the pier was packed full of people.  According to the news, it was Bar Harbor's busiest 4th of July yet!  I'm really not surprised!

The next morning, we got up early for Papa's Memorial BBQ.  My uncle, aunt and cousins were all visiting from California so we planned to have a memorial type "celebration of Papa's life" that weekend.  We had a short service at my aunt's house where we shared memories of Papa.  My cousin Matt made a beautiful video which had a voice over of Papa telling a story to him.  It was so nice to hear his voice.  After, the family released red and blue balloons, Papa's favorite colors.  Then, we had food and visited with family and friends.  My family wore Disney shirts since we shared so many fun times there with Papa.  Eliot and Elissa wore their Main Street Electricity shirts.  It was Papa's favorite.  It was a hard day, but a nice way to celebrate Papa.

Photos taken by Chelsea Ellis Photography

The next day, Elissa and I had a college visit at the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor.  We figured she better check out any schools she was interested in while she was already in Maine.  It was a gorgeous campus right on the ocean.  I've lived there all my life and never realized how stunning their campus was.  We took our time riding back to southern Maine.  Elissa even posed with some of the statues at the rest stop.

The next week was pretty similar to the others- Elissa hung out while Eliot and I worked.  We watched a few more movies, went shopping, the usual.  Elissa decided she wanted to make some ear headbands for two of her girl friends for their upcoming Disneyland trip at the end of July.  She and I bought supplies and I helped her get working on those.  She's so creative and she came up with the ideas all on her own.

Elissa also came up with a design for herself.  She loved Bing Bong in Inside Out and she really wanted to make an ear hat.  She created the design, and then I helped her put it together.  Well, actually all I did was attach the pink fabric and help her with the cotton candy part; she did the rest!  The ears came out really cute.  I'm so proud of her and how hard she worked on all of them!

On Thursday, we went back to Old Orchard Beach to watch the fireworks again.  We got there early so we'd have plenty of time to enjoy the beach before it got dark.  Eliot and Elissa got Pier Fries and I got fried dough.  We played toss on the beach with a little Nerf football.  Elissa enjoyed playing in the water while Eliot and I relaxed.  Then, she and I covered Eliot in sand.  Before we knew it, it was time for the fireworks.

The following weekend, we went back up to Bar Harbor.  Saturday, we went to the Jordan Pond House for popovers.  My entire family came with us and it was a lot of fun.  The popovers were delicious.  After, Elissa, Eliot and I went down to the lake to take a few photos.  It's so beautiful down there.  I also wanted to show Eliot and Elissa the Bubbles off in the distance at the other end of the lake. 

Eliot, Elissa and I returned home and went for the swim at the campground pool.  It was nice to cool off after being in the sun at the Jordan Pond House.  The pool was pretty busy, but we didn't mind.  It was nice to enjoy the water.

Around dinner time, Jeremy joined us to go mini golfing at Pirates Cove.  We had a blast golfing.  We always have a ton of fun at Pirates Cove.  Jeremy kept playing around and annoying Elissa and it was hilarious.  She kept trying to shoot the water cannon and he kept beating her to it.  Needless to say, there was a lot of laughter.

After, we went into town quickly to get Rosalie's pizza.  We were meeting Mom, Dad and Nana at the campground for a campfire but we were starving.  We shared the pizza around the campfire and talked and laughed.  We also had to bring back campfire cones and s'mores since they were such a big hit last year.  However, this year, the campfire cones came out a lot better.  They were delicious.

The next day, Eliot and Elissa were meeting Katie around noon to go hiking.  We went into town and did a little shopping while waiting for Katie.  Then I drove all three of them over to the hiking trail at the Bubble Mountains we saw from the Jordan Pond House.  The two peak trail isn't too long or strenuous and it's a gorgeous view from the top.  While they went hiking, I went to the pool with Mom and Dad.  Then, Mom and Dad went to get me, Jeremy and Nana milkshakes.

Eliot and Elissa returned from their hike exhausted and sticky.  (It was over 80 degrees and humid that day.)  They weren't too amused that I went to the pool and had ice cream... ha ha.  They told us about the hike and the beautiful view then took showers to cool off.  Eliot and I took an afternoon nap to rest up for the ride home.  Then, we went back into Bar Harbor to do a little bit more shopping.  Elissa had a few presents to get for her friends.  We didn't leave Bar Harbor until late and we got home past 2:00 am, but it was worth it.  We had a great weekend.

The next morning, Elissa and I had another campus tour at the University of New England.  The school isn't far from our house, so thankfully we could sleep in.  The tour was great and I was really impressed with the campus and school.  It's right on the water; they have an incredible sports center.  It was great.  Elissa liked it too.

The next day came before we knew it: her last full day in Maine.  That night, Eliot and I took Elissa out to dinner at Longhorn Steakhouse.  It's her favorite restaurant out here so we tried to take her a few times.  Afterwards, we met up with my cousin Lucas and his wife Rachel.  Elissa really wanted to go candlepin bowling last summer and we ran out of time.  We made sure we did it this trip.  We have a place locally that has glow bowling.  It was a lot of fun.  Rachel and Elissa had never been candle pin bowling with the smaller balls and they did really well.  We had a lot of laughs and a lot of fun.  After, we played around in the arcade for a little bit before returning home to pack.

Sadly, all good things must come to an end eventually.  The next morning, Elissa and I finished some last minute craft things before packing the remaining items up.  Eliot and I drove her up to the airport to drop her off.  Goodbyes are never easy, but this time, at least we knew we'd be seeing Elissa again in less than 50 days.  Camp Cady has come to a close, but it was another successful, fun summer with our camper!!!  °o°

Camp Cady- Part 1

It's been busy around here as you've probably noticed from my lack of regular posting. Eliot's sister Elissa was visiting from mid-June to mid-July and we wanted to spend time with her.  It's been a few weeks since she went back to California, and I'm slowly getting back on track with my blogging.  Eliot and I had a blast and we were sad to see her go.  But we're going to see her again one month from today at Disneyland!  Yay!!!

I wanted to write a recap of her trip and I'm just getting to it now!  We've dubbed Elissa's long summer visits "Camp Cady".  She had a list of things she enjoyed last summer that she wanted to do again this year.  Eliot and I were more than happy to oblige. (Her list included a few of our favorite food places.  Yum!)  It was a great trip and we had a lot of memorable moments together.  Here's an overview of the fun we had during her month long visit to Maine!

The first weekend Elissa was here, we took her down to Massachusetts to Six Flags New England and the Yankee Candle Village.  We really wanted to take her last summer, but there simply wasn't enough time to do it.  This year, we planned ahead, even having her come out a week early so we could fit it in!  It was a blast.  I'm not a roller coaster person, but Eliot and Elissa had a great time riding them.  Their favorite was the new "Wicked Cyclone," the old wooden coaster that was just converted to steel tracks.  The first day there, Eliot and I went on Blizzard River, a ride like Kali River Rapids.  That's more my speed.  Unfortunatley, we got soaked and it had just started raining when we went on the ride.  We stayed at the park a little while longer before calling it a night, going back to the hotel and getting changed into dry clothes.

That night, we decided to go see Inside Out since it was the first weekend it was released.  We went to the local theater and it was so much fun.  The theater had a painting on the window with T-Rexes, Minions, Anger and Fear.  We loved the short "Lava" before the movie. It's one of my favorite Pixar shorts now!  Inside Out was amazing too.  We really enjoyed it and all wanted to see it again.  After the movie, we took photos with the giant Inside Out sign.  Then, Elissa found an Inside Out photo booth so we took a few photos in that!

The next morning, we got up early and headed for the Yankee Candle Village since it was still raining.  Our plan was to spend the morning and early afternoon there.  By the time we would be leaving, the rain would have ended and we could go back to Six Flags for a few hours.  However, things didn't go quite as planned.  We ended up spending twice as much time in the Yankee Candle store.  (Ok let's be honest, I knew that would happen... the store is awesome!)  The store was really quiet, although it was the Sunday of Father's Day.  It probably isn't usually that empty!

We enjoyed having most of the store to ourselves; we took photos, found gifts for family members and got a few things for ourselves.  Shortly after arriving, I found a rainbow Minnie Mouse plush that fell in love with instantly.  In fact, I carried her around the entire store before purchasing her.  (She's going to live on my desk!)  There was a good sized Frozen toy display that I enjoyed browsing through.  (I'm such a kid.)  I never realized they sold Jim Shore Disney figures!  I also admired those for a while.

In fact, the store had quite a few Disney things on display.  The best one of all... the Frozen village set with Elsa's Ice Castle. Over and over I told Eliot we didn't need it, but he insisted we get it since he knows how much I love Frozen.  (He's the best!)  I can't wait to put it on display this winter!  It's stunning lit up.

After shopping, we took our bags out to the car and went back inside to get something to eat.  Yankee Candle has a great selection of food and we ordered plenty.  We sat next to the fountain while we enjoyed our meal.  Afterwards, Elissa ran over to get some gourmet popcorn and then we bid the Yankee Candle Village goodbye.

We went back to Six Flags for a few hours that afternoon.  Coke was running a promotion where you could make a small soda can with your name on it.  We really wanted to do that so we headed there first.  We also got cans with my parent's names on them.  (My Dad loves Coke items.)  Afterwards, Eliot went on Bizarro, the insanely tall roller coaster they got me on a few summers ago when his other sister Sara was visiting.  Elissa and I ate ice cream bars while waiting for him.  Before we left, Eliot and Elissa went on Wicked Cyclone one last time.  Our weekend getaway was a great way to kick of Elissa's stay!

Back home, we found plenty of things to keep ourselves busy.  Elissa hung out at the house while Eliot and I were at work.  At night, we'd try to watch movies.  We also hit up a few of the local stores.  Elissa and I enjoyed looking at craft supplies at Michael's, ACMoore and JoAnn's.  Elissa was a fan of JoAnn's selection of Disney fabrics.

We enjoyed wandering around Wal-Mart.  Our local store had a great section of Disney stickers and posters.  One night, Elissa and I went to Kohl's and found the Lauren Conrad Minnie Mouse collection red skirt in my size!  (And it came home with me.)

We also went to the mall a few times.  Hot Topic is a personal favorite of ours.  They carry a lot of Disney items.  Elissa and I were on a mission to find Inside Out items; we weren't disappointed!  We both left with Bing Bong shirts and Inside Out socks.

The following week, we took Elissa to Old Orchard Beach to watch the fireworks.  Over the summer, the city has fireworks on the beach every Thursday night.  Eliot and Elissa bought Pier Fries and I got an ice cream and we enjoyed the beautiful sunset and people watching.  The fireworks display was a lot longer than I expected!  It was a great show.  After, we played on the beach for a little while before calling it a night.

The second weekend Elissa stayed with us, we had the Color Run.  (Read more in my Color Run post.)  Long story short, we had a good time even though it poured.  It was really great to see our friends!  We also had fun making our Tinker Bell inspired outfits!

Just like that Elissa's trip was already half way over!  Check back in a few days for the recap of the second half of her stay with us!  °o°

Countdown to KeyCon 2015

I really can't believe it's August already.  It doesn't surprise me though- things have been extremely busy around here!  Not only are we gearing up for Disneyland, creating new Happily Ever Hatter designs, and launching IllusionEars, but we're also getting ready for KeyCon 2015, Universal and Walt Disney World!

KeyCon 2014 was incredible.  I had so much fun meeting my fellow Key to the World travel agents.  I made some great friends who are more like family.  KeyCon 2015 is shaping up to be bigger and better.  It will be like a big Key to the World reunion at Universal!  I can't wait to see everyone again!

I'm really excited to be going to Universal this year.  (I haven't been to Universal since our wedding trip in 2012.)  I'm so excited to see the new Harry Potter Diagon Alley section!  I really want to see the dragon and to try some butterbeer ice cream!  We're also staying at the Hard Rock Hotel!  It's going to be awesome!!!

If that's not amazing enough, after KeyCon is over, Eliot and I are going to Disney for a few days!  We already had our annual passes so it made sense to use a few more days before they expire!  We've also got dining reservations with a few of my Key to the World friends!

So now, we wait for our epic September adventures.  Only 33 days until we leave for Disneyland and 56 until we leave for Universal and Walt Disney World!!!  Woo!!!  °o°

August 2015 Calendar

I can't believe how fast summer is flying by!  Fall will be here before I know it!  Yikes!  Here's my August 2015 Mickey and Minnie Free Printable Calendar!

These calendars are always some of my most popular posts!  I'm incredibly honored to share another year of calendars with you and to and bring joy to so many Disney fans!

Here's the link to download the August 2015 PDF version of the printable.

These calendars are perfect for trip countdowns or for teachers and Disney themed classrooms.  They're also perfect for training calendars for runDisney events!

Feel free to link this post up to Pinterest or Facebook so your friends and family can have a fun Mickey and Minnie calendar too!  Let's spread the Disney Magic!!!  °o°

Note: I've made calendars through 2015 and I will be working on the 2016 calendars over the next week.  I don't post the PDF links on my blog until the beginning of each month.  If you're looking for a particular month and would like me to email it to you ahead of my post going live, you can send my blog an email at mydisneylifeblog[at]gmail.com.  Then, I'll send you the PDFs directly.  :-)