Do you remember the Muppets? I do, vividly, how I used to look forward to a Sunday tea time back in the late 1970's when The Muppet Show would televise. My favourite bit had to be the opening scene as all the Muppets marched on and sat in their own little windows in the theatre and then of course my favourite character was Miss Piggy! I had to laugh when I took a quick look at a which Muppet are you like quiz? as apparently I am like Miss Piggy. 'Hi Ya' and a chop of my arm!
For a couple of years now dh and I have likened Miss E to Beaker as she tends to whine and gets a bit stressed and makes these funny little noises, which sound exactly like him. Until this weekend the kids had no real idea who Beaker was but after a trip to Leicester Square on Sunday morning they are now fully versed and have fallen in love with the Muppets too. 'When can we see the Muppets again Mummy?' is what I am hearing a fair amount at the moment and it is a fair point, bring back the Muppets!
I blogged last November about a phenomenal London hotel that I stayed at for a work conference. This hotel was the Athenaeum in Mayfair, it is a 5 star hotel which is unique and beautiful but also manages to be exceedingly welcoming and friendly.
One session of my conference was around brand positioning and we all did an exercise about a brand that we felt passionate about and could easily sell as it was well established and recognised. We had to identify the USP (unique selling proposition) and convince others to choose our brand. Both Disney and the Athenaeum are the kind of established and quality brands that I could have chosen for this exercise. They are now working together and boy does that create a smash hit combination!
You may recall that we were lucky enough to go to a Disney event recently where we watched the film Tangled. All the family loved the film and we are even going to see it again in April - already booked, how efficient is that?
At the event the girls were given a Rapunzel doll each, these are made by Mattel and retail for £19.99, you can buy them from Toys R Us and other good retailers. My little ladies love their dolls, especially Miss E who actually refers to herself as Rapunzel a fair amount now. As the girls have a love for these dolls I thought I would write a quick review and offer some Tangled goodies for giveaway.
I have been pleased with the dolls, they are Barbie sized and are well made. I like the fact that Rapunzel does not look too adult, she is cute and girlie and her clothes are well made. She has the trademark beautiful platinum blond hair and lets be honest after a month of 3 year old play it is looking pretty tangled now, but it combs out quite well and looks far less 'street' than the girls barbies do.
The feature that Miss E really likes is the extra bit of hair that you can clip to the end of Rapunzels to make it really long. What Miss E does is clip it to her own hair and wonder round chanting 'Rapunzel throw down your hair' to herself whilst doing very big hair flicks! It is to cute to watch.
So in short, if you are looking for a gift for a little girlie girl then this doll would be a great buy. I do not think you will be disappointed.
And to celebrate the fabulous film that is Tangled, how about a giveaway?
I can offer you a great DK book full of Tangled facts and activities, my ladies are just a little young for it really and also a new copy of the Tangled soundtrack. There really are some marvellous tunes in the film, all included on this great album. The pair of these would delight any little fan.
To enter:
Subscribe to my blog, either use one of the widgets at the side to follow here or on networked blogs or subscribe by email.
Leave me a comment to say how you subscribed and let me know how to contact you if you win.
That is your mandatory entry, if you want a second entry then tweet this giveaway 'I want to #win Tangled goodies from @michelletwinmum http://bit.ly/eK30IO '
Terms and Conditions:
The giveaway will close at 12 noon Thursday 17 February 2011
The winner will be contacted within 3 days of this giveaway closing
The giveaway is open to those in the UK or Ireland
The winner will be chosen by random number generator
There is no cash or prize alternative
Good Luck!
Congratulations to @Aesop57, you are the lucky winner. Please DM me on twitteror email me your postal address. Thanks, Mich x
So, we went to the cinema yesterday morning because for once in our lives dh was off on a Saturday and we all got up in time! Upon arriving JJ announced that he wanted to see the Sorcerers Apprentice and the girls wanted to see Tinkerbell, which is what we went there with the aim to see. Being the kind of loving mum I am I suggested to dh that he take JJ in to see his film and I would take the girls in to see Tinkerbell. It was only after buying the tickets that I wondered what on earth I had let myself in for. Two 3 year old lively kids on my own in a quiet cinema? Am I bonkers? well yes - so go for it I thought.
Our first cinema experience with the girls was last July when they were just 3 years. We went to see Toy Story 3 and paid near on £50 for the privilege of listening to the girls both chatter loudly, try to escape from their seats and generally be pests. I blogged about the disaster it was here! Dh left the film with both girls about half way through.
Then a couple of weeks ago we ventured into a cinema again, half a year after the last time. This time the film was free and I was also pretty certain it should engage the girls and keep them occupied. Thankfully Disney's Tangled did the job and the girls adored it and behaved much better. Thus why I was willing to give the 2:1 ratio a go on this Saturday morning.
So Saturday was a success, so much so that I thought I would share my top 10 tips for taking pre-schoolers/ toddlers to the cinema with you, even twins where the ratio is 2:1!
Do some training with the kids before hand. I have never been one to sit and watch TV with the kids but for the last couple of months once a week I get the kids in their PJs really early and we sit down and snuggle and watch TV. They have to talk in whispers and are not allowed to get down to play.
Check out the Saturday/ Sunday morning kids screenings at your local cinemas. 5 of us went on Saturday for £5.00, now that is value! and you then do not mind if you do have to leave early!
Arrive at the cinema in good time, so that you can get the tickets you want and good seats. Nothing worse than disappointed youngsters in a film they were not expecting to see.
In the same vein, take your seat early and then the kids have plenty of time to ask any question they fancy before the film starts. Let them help you choose the seat and feel important.
Talk the kids through what will happen, ie: everyone will sit down, lights will dim, there will be adverts, then the film will start and we all have to talk in whispers etc. It was amazing how much this helped this time.
Limit the amount of fluid they drink before and during the showing. We did 2 toilet runs in a very short film, I think it was the fun factor!
Take snacks with you. If you want to buy popcorn at the cinema go ahead but I begrudge paying more on the popcorn that the ticket price! So I pop a bag at home and take it in the kids bag, I also take little bowls which fit into the drinks holders. My girls love to munch popcorn and this keeps them quiet for a few moments. I also took them a Chuppa Chups lolly each (I am sure some of you ace parents do not give your kids these, but mine occasionally do have them - you must have noticed it is honest parenting here at MFTH...).
Do remember the wipes though if you give a sticky lolly! and tissues as well, snotty noses wiped on your neighbours sleeves is a recipe for disaster!
Once the movie finishes wait in your seats will others filter out the cinema. Surely you are not in a rush? Better to leave towards the end of the crowd and know exactly where your children are.
Lastly and most importantly think positive. This will be OK. If you have taken them to a weekend morning kids showing then other people expect some noise and if they don't - really they should! If Mummy stays stress free it will really help the kids to do the same. Don't jump on their every movement or noise made, choose your battles. ON Saturday both girls stood at one point and watched bits of the film and they both sat on my lap at differing points and they swapped chairs too but that made it all exciting for them and totally manageable for me as I just stayed unfazed. At their height is does not matter if they stand in a tiered seating area, so why would I worry about it?
So there you have it. My tips for taking your little kids to the cinema. Have fun and let me know how you get on. Mich x
This is another entry for the Multiples Mayhem Carnival being held over at Two become Four on Monday 7th February 2011. If you would like to join in and tell a story about your multiples please get in touch with the host of this carnival - the lovely Rebecca.
Any idea what WYOO means? I am not sure if it is a widely used acronym or if it just came from a Parenting forum that I used to frequent!
Anyway, WYOO stands for What's your opinion on.... and in this case I am asking about 3D cinema. I have to say that for me until last Sunday I was thinking that 3D cinema was over hyped and a bit of a let down. I kept waiting for those pop out of your screen kind of scenes - you know the sort that you get at the Imax. Then this Sunday I got to see a special preview of Disney's 50th animated Film, Tangled and boy did my opinion on 3D change. Instead of being full of gimmicks I came to realise that the 3D experience with most films just adds that extra special bit of magic. I'll be interested to hear what you think though..... leave me a comment.
So Disney Tangled, what can I tell you? I loved it, my dh loved it, JJ loved it and the twins loved it too. So that is all five of us ranging from 3 years to 37 years loving this film. It really has something for everyone in it. Disney have taken the classic tale of Rapunzel and turned it on it's head, creating something that is really unique and inspiring too. It is a beautiful tale of how two totally different young people from diverse backgrounds and experiences can meet by chance and go on a life changing adventure together and of course being Disney, they fall in love and the ending is happy - just how it should be.
I expected to go and see a classic Disney Princess tale and it is anything but. This film can be described as a comedy that will have you doing belly laughs - well it did me anyway! It is also a musical and there were some particularly good songs in it, such as Mother Knows Best.
My personal favourite character was Maximus the Captain of the Guards Horse. How they managed to make an animated horse so realistic and hilarious is beyond me, but it is done just perfectly.
Dh loved the simplicity of the tale and he found Flynn Rider a very authentic and appealing hero. While of course the girls just loved Rapunzel and her beautiful 70 foot magical golden hair (Just like mine, commented Miss M, well it would have been if she had not of cut it herself just before Christmas!). Many a game of Rapunzel throw down your hair has been played in our house in the last couple of days.
My JJ thought that Pascal the mini chameleon lizard and Rapunzel's personal friend was a great character and he has since found out you can get Pascal toys so I know what he is now saving for.
I won't spoil the story for you and reveal too much but I can say that watching the trailer for this film you only get a glimpse of all the great stuff contained in the film. You will not be disappointed, I assure you.
Our family will be giving this film a excellent 5/5 rating and we will definitely be buying it when it is released on DVD.
Tangled is out in the UK at cinemas from 28 January 2011. Take a look at the trailer...
This is a review post. I was invited to London to the Disney Office to watch the Tangled with my family. We were also lucky enough to meet Mickey Mouse, have a nice lunch and receive some goody bags on leaving. As per always I remain honest in my write up. Thank you Disney for your super hospitality.
Do you remember the Muppets? I do, vividly, how I used to look forward to a Sunday tea time back in the late 1970's when The Muppet Show would televise. My favourite bit had to be the opening scene as all the Muppets marched on and sat in their own little windows in the theatre and then of course my favourite character was Miss Piggy! I had to laugh when I took a quick look at a which Muppet are you like quiz? as apparently I am like Miss Piggy. 'Hi Ya' and a chop of my arm!
