At Home Pirate Day Family Fun

Have a pirate day of fun!

Looking to bring a little magic to a day at home?  I love creating Disney themed days for my kids and thought I would share my latest one here.  We're all missing the magic of Disney right now so we took advantage of some of our leftover goodies from our recent Disney Cruise Line vacation to plan a pirate themed day at home.  Here are a few ideas to recreate your own pirate experience with your little buccaneers.

Pirate Costumes 

We started off the day getting dressed in our pirate-y best.  On our recent Disney Cruise Line vacation on the Disney Dream, our whole family had makeovers at The Pirate's League on Pirate Night.  I saved all of our take home items - sashes, bandanas, eye patches, swords, etc. - and we used them to get dressed up.

Read more about The Pirate's League on Disney Cruise Line here!

If you don't have pirate costumes at your house, see how creative you can get.  Do you have any material you could use to make your own bandanas?  Can the kids draw their own swords on a recycled box and cut it out?  You could even cover it in aluminum foil to make it look more real! And don't forget, eye makeup can easily give a few pirate touches to anyone's face.

Pirate Activities

While we are social distancing / learning from home, coming up with educational activities during the day was a must.  My youngest son who is in Pre-K chose a Jake and the Neverland Pirates book from his collection to read with me that day.  We laughed at silly Captain Hook and Mr. Smee while counting Gold Doubloons with Jake and his crew.  For my older son in second grade, he found a book about pirates in one of his reading collections online from his school that he read independently.  We also practiced some pirate-y problem solving skills with this scavenger hunt that I found on Pinterest.  The boys LOVED it and have been begging me for more activities like this.  Of course, not ALL of our learning activities were pirate themed, but I did the best I could to add a little swashbuckling adventure to the day.  There are tons of pirate themed craft ideas online too that a quick s

Pirate Themed Dinner & A Movie

We wrapped up the night with an easy dinner from under the sea.  With kid favorites like fish sticks and popcorn shrimp, it was an easy crowd pleaser.  We also decided to break the rules a bit and do dinner in the living room while we watched Pirates of the Caribbean on Disney+.  If you're not sure if your kids are old enough for pirate stories starring Johnny Depp, you can end your pirate day with Jake and the Neverland Pirates.  I'm not sure about you, but I think he is one of the most underrated pirates out there and I'm so glad we can watch him again on Disney+ since he stopped airing on Disney Junior!

For more information on educational and fun content on Disney+, check this out!

So that's it!  A few easy ways to add some pirate fun to your stay-at-home day with kids.  I was able to pull this off with just the things I had on hand at the house, so it was simple, but fun.  If you try out your own pirate night, be sure to tag me on Twitter and Instagram @dsnyrunrgrl so I can "sea" your adventures!  Ahoy!!

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Free Activity Sheets - Frozen 2 Coloring Pages

Frozen 2 - Photo from Walt Disney Studios

The queen of social distancing, Elsa, and the entire Arendelle crew is now available in Frozen 2 on Disney digital and on Disney+.  Today, I'm excited to share with you FREE coloring pages and activities to share with the whole family!

Frozen 2 became the number one animated movie of all time with it's blockbuster success and appeal to Frozen fans, both young and old.  I also think it's the perfect film for families to watch during tough times.  All of the characters are grappling with big emotions - fear, frustration, anger, questioning what they've been taught - and it provides a great back drop to have a conversation with your own kids about things going on in the world that they may not understand.  Even if kids don't fully understand WHAT is happening in the world, they certainly have feelings about it.  A family movie night is a great way to blend conversation with fun in your household.  Before we look at how to have a Frozen family fun night at home, check out my complete coverage of Frozen 2:

Walking the Red Carpet at the Frozen 2 World Premiere

Review of Frozen 2

The Music of Frozen 2

Growing Up: A Look at Olaf in Frozen 2

Will there be a Frozen 3??

Now that you're up to speed on everything you need to know about Frozen 2, let's talk about ways to have a Frozen family fun night.

• Play Charades - Anna, Elsa, Olaf, and Kristoff enjoy a fun evening in the castle at the beginning of the film playing charades.  This is something easy for the whole family to enjoy on a relaxing night in.  You can create your own charade cards or search Pinterest for some ideas that you can print out.
• Go on a Scavenger Hunt - Frozen 2 takes us Into the Unknown, but you can search the familiar with a new perspective by having a family scavenger hunt while walking in your neighborhood.  Depending on the ages of your children, you can make the items easy or hard.  For real young kids, you can have them look for things of various colors, while older kids may be able to find more specific items like types of birds or flowers.  Spring is a great time to get outside!
• FREE Frozen 2 Coloring Sheets and Activities - Download this FREE activity packet from Walt Disney Studios here.  Your family can enjoy these before, during, or after your movie night!

With all of this time at home, we've been enjoying movie nights revisiting our favorites AND trying new movies.  Make family movie night a tradition in your house!

About Frozen 2

Why was Elsa born with magical powers? The answer is calling her and threatening her kingdom. Together with Anna, Kristoff, Olaf and Sven, she'll set out on a dangerous but remarkable journey. In “Frozen,” Elsa feared her powers were too much for the world. In “Frozen 2,” she must hope they are enough. From the Academy Award®-winning team—directors Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck, producer Peter Del Vecho and songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez—and featuring the voices of Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell, Jonathan Groff and Josh Gad.

Frozen 2 is now available for digital purchase and is currently streaming on Disney+!

Facebook - www.facebook.com/disneyfrozen
Instagram - www.instagram.com/disneyfrozen
Twitter - http://twitter.com/disneyfrozen
#Frozen2

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Free Onward Activity Sheets

Pixar Onward - Image from Walt Disney Studios

The great team at Walt Disney Studios keeps bringing us good news in these challenging times with early releases of some great movies.  Pixar's Onward, which opened in theaters everywhere on March 6, only had about a week before school closures and social distancing became the norm around our country, meaning many families didn't have the chance to see the movie in theaters.  Coming to the rescue, Walt Disney Studios has made the movie available starting on Friday, March 20th as a digital purchase and will begin streaming it on Disney+ as of April 3rd!

Check out my review of the movie here!

See my top quotes from the film - so many emotional moments!!

Plan an Onward Family Movie Night!

If you're looking to have family fun while staying inside, look no further than an Onward movie night!  My friends over at Walt Disney Studios have put together these FREE downloadable activity sheets - including a memory game, maze, and coloring pages.  Besides those activities - here are a few other ideas to add a bit of magic to your movie night.

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Playing with Fire Movie Review

Playing with Fire is blazing into theaters this weekend and you won't want to miss this hot new film if you're a family with young kids like mine.  I had the opportunity to screen this film on the Paramount Studios lot in California as one of the many incredible experiences at The Geekly Retreat.  Coincidentally, my husband took my two children to see the film back home in Maryland the same night which works out well when comparing my thoughts with those of my family.  As Superintendent Jake Carson would say, "where's my ready crew??"  Let's go!

First of all, this film is definitely for families to enjoy together.  Your little ones will find a lot to laugh at in this film, especially in the first half of the film.  There is a ton of physical humor that always entertains kids - tripping over fire hoses, crashing into ceilings, spicy peppers, and riding an out of control fire hose. . .just to name a few.  And then there's, quite literally, a lot of potty humor.  What kid doesn't like a good poop joke?  In fact, the initial reaction quote that my husband texted me from my four year old was that he "laughed his butt off."  Both the adults and the kids throughout the film deliver funny moment after funny moment.  I see a lot of my boys in Christian Convery's character - mischievous, funny, and sassy but ultimately having a heart of gold!

For those of you wondering, this film isn't just for kids.  I'll admit, that as an adult, I found the first half of the film to be a little TOO corny for my tastes - but it's all the stuff my kids would love to watch.  You'll also find John Leguizamo's faux quotes funny and they are sprinkled throughout the film.  But it's not all jokes. The movie does get more depth as the story develops, allowing adults to connect more with the characters and the plot.  Without spoiling the movie for those of you planning to see it, hang with it until the camping scene and then it will take a turn to a movie that's still kid-friendly while tugging at your emotional heartstrings.  Almost every character is going through a story of loss that has impacted or is impacting their life and you find yourself being drawn into their struggles to define who they really are as the movie progresses.  Be warned, you'll wish Keegan-Michael Key was sitting next to you with a tissue as the film reaches it conclusion.  Following a formula that has been successful for other wrestlers turned actors, John Cena delivers a character that is the perfect blend of corny humor for the kids and hunky hero for the adults.

Overall, if you have young kids in your family, you should definitely plan to head to theaters and catch this film.  Kids will love the humor while parents will enjoy the touching story of learning to let your guard down as several characters change their perspectives on love and life during the movie.  This isn't likely going to be a film that your tweens and teens would enjoy, but young kids will be rolling in the aisles - just ask mine!

About Playing with Fire

When straight-laced fire superintendent Jake Carson (John Cena) and his elite team of expert firefighters (Keegan-Michael Key, John Leguizamo and Tyler Mane) come to the rescue of three siblings (Brianna Hildebrand, Christian Convery and Finley Rose Slater) in the path of an encroaching wildfire, they quickly realize that no amount of training could prepare them for their most challenging job yet – babysitters. Unable to locate the children’s parents, the firefighters have their lives, jobs and even their fire depot turned upside down and quickly learn that kids – much like fires –are wild and unpredictable.

Playing with Fire opens everywhere November 8th!  Grab your ready crew and go see it now!  Be sure to follow Playing with Fire on social media too at #PlayingwithFireMovie.

Facebook - www.facebook.com/playingwithfiremovie
Instagram - www.instagram.com/playingwithfire
Twitter - http://twitter.com/playingwfire

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4 Things to Do Before Your See Toy Story 4!

That's right, the toys are almost back in town and the "BUZZ" around the movie is huge!  If you haven't been following #ToyStory4 on social media, you have been missing out on a lot of excitement this weekend.  The press junket met at the Walt Disney World Resort for a super advanced screening of the film and a chance to interview the stars - Tim Allen, Tom Hanks, Keanu Reeves, and many, many more.  Let's just say that I've been looking forward to this film since it was announced, and now I'm even more excited.  I mean, check out this trailer!



Did you see that Bo Peep is back and cooler than ever?!? But for those of us that didn't get to hang with Woody, Buzz, and friends this past weekend, we have a few fun things we can do in the days ahead before the movie is released.  Whether you are a 2 or 102, you're always a kid at heart and these activities have the whole family in mind!

1. Build a Forky - So Forky is just one of the new characters from Toy Story 4.  When word of this new character was released, there was a big question - is he even a toy???  Well, if you have little ones like me, we all know that even an empty toilet paper roll can become the coolest toy around so I have no doubt that Forky is going to be a hip addition to the toy crew.  One of the best things about Forky parents - you can make him instead of shelling out money at Target to make one!  Check out this cool tutorial from Patty over at A Mother's Random Thoughts and have fun making this craft with your kids!  Maybe you can even bring Forky to see the movie with you!

2. Visit the Toy Story 4 Summer Road Trip - That's right! Toy Story 4 fun is hitting the road and those of us in the Mid-Atlantic have a few opportunities to join the fun.  The Toy Story 4 Summer Roadtrip is traveling coast-to-coast hitting cities such as Los Angeles, Miami, Denver, Dallas, and Philadelphia.  If you live in the DC / Maryland area, the Road Trip will make it's stop at Silver Spring, MD on Thursday, June 13.  It's open to the public from 10AM - 2PM and can be found in Downtown Silver Spring at 900 Ellsworth Drive.  The Toy Story 4 Summer Road Trip features photo ops, film-themed prizes, carnival games and a lot more family-friendly fun! Keep up on all the fun by following #ToyStory4 #SummerRoadTrip and #GoRVing on social media.

Media Image for Toy Story 4 Summer Road Trip

3. Have a Toy Story Marathon - The Toy Story franchise has been around for a long time and it may have been a while since you've checked in on your favorite toys.  Setting up a Toy Story movie marathon is the perfect way to relive the entire adventure from the beginning.  Looking for fun ways to theme the evening?  Try ordering pizza for the family just like Andy visits his favorite hangout Pizza Planet in the original Toy Story.  While you're watching, you can have your kids color and complete some of these FREE downloadable activities.  And don't forget to cap the night off with a super cool dessert.  How about trying this Forky cupcakes that are from Desert Chica over on Pinterest?

4. Disneybound as Toy Story Characters - Anyone who follows me know I love a good Disneybound!  If you're unfamiliar with the term, it's where you take regular everyday clothes, and turn them into something pixie dusted by dressing "inspired" by your favorite character.  Challenge yourself to see if you can pull off some Toy Story inspired Disneybound looks or, better yet, gain some inspiration from my Pinterest board and see if you can get the whole family Disneybounding for your viewing of Toy Story 4 when it opens in theaters.

If this doesn't get you even more pumped up about the release of Toy Story 4, I'm not sure what will! These movies have been some of my favorites featuring heartwarming moments, laugh out loud memories, and, yes, lots of tears (here's looking at you Toy Story 3).  While I haven't seen the film yet, I've heard from many that the ending of this one is the emotional powerhouse we've now come to expect from Toy Story films and that fans are walking away giving these toys two thumbs up!  Toy Story 4 opens everywhere June 21.  Don't forget to follow the social media channels below for the latest updates and information regarding the film!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PixarToyStory/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/toystory

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ToyStory/

YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/user/DisneyPixar

#ToyStory4

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