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Sea World’s Christmas Celebration Lights Up the Season

9 December 2012 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

Shamu Miracles — Shamu Christmas Miracles holiday show

One of my family’s favorite places during the holidays is SeaWorld – with their wonderful Christmas Celebration, included in the price of regular admission, the spirit of the season is sure to find you there. This year was no different and my children had a wonderful time seeing the shows and experiences SeaWorld has to offer. My favorite is the Sea of Trees, which light up the lake in the middle of the park and are just beautiful.

With everything from elves to Elmo, and from Santa to Shamu, SeaWorld’s Christmas Celebration is where the season meets the sea. Events take place on select dates November 17 through December 31, 2012. The best way to experience SeaWorld’s Christmas Celebration this season is with a SeaWorld Fun Card, which includes unlimited visits to SeaWorld through 2013, all for the price of a single day’s admission.

Returning Seasonal Favorites Include:

Families and friends can once again enjoy the spirit of Christmas during SeaWorld’s holiday-themed shows and festivities:

O Wondrous Night tells the greatest story never told, with more than 30 carols, based upon the Christmas Story and told through the eyes of a variety of live animals. Everyone will be entertained by this touching, light-hearted and glorious celebration featuring a host of angels, animals and the true glory of Christmas. And new this year, guests will have the opportunity to take photos with some of the stars from the show!

Oh Wondrous Night is a spirited retelling of the Christmas story

SeaWorld invites guests to experience the grace and beauty of our Shamu family at Shamu Stadium, during the night-time show, Shamu Christmas Miracles. Thrilling seasonal music rings out as whales soar through the air in a performance that will take the audience on a stirring voyage into the heart of the holidays.
Winter Wonderland on Ice is an ice skating extravaganza where Christmas comes to life through towering water fountains, magnificent fireworks and some of the most talented ice skaters in the world. This is a don’t-miss, holiday sensation.
In addition to the incredible seasonal shows and attractions, the amazing Sea of Trees includes more than 100 massive trees, each sparkling, lighted and choreographed to classic holiday tunes, making a dramatic display around SeaWorld’s center lake.

All Aboard! At the park’s Wild Arctic attraction, guests embark on a heart-warming journey to the North Pole aboard THE POLAR EXPRESS Experience, based on the film from Warner Bros. Pictures and Shangri-La Entertainment, inspired by the beloved Caldecott Medal children’s book by Chris Van Allsburg. Discover the sights, sounds, and smells of the season as family and friends are immersed in the dazzling wonder of this beloved holiday classic. Upon arrival at the North Pole, guests can meet Santa Claus himself, and encounter astounding animals in a wintery wonderland.
Holiday Reflections: Fireworks and Fountains Finale, with soaring fountains, dazzling lights, and festive fireworks, choreographed to joyous holiday musical favorites. Experience a wondrous SeaWorld Christmas connection that lights the night.

New this year is Show Express, which provides guests with reserved seating at all of SeaWorld’s Christmas Celebration’s shows, plus front-of-the-line access to THE POLAR EXPRESS Experience, All-Day Dining Deal and a complimentary holiday photo. Reserve you spothere.

Clyde and Seamore’s Countdown to Christmas features Santa’s helpers, Clyde and Seamore, who are bringing their own brand of comedy to Christmas this year. Our loveable sea lions, along with a few mischievous otters, a comical elf, and a wintery walrus or two, search for Santa.

A Sesame Street Christmas is a festive and fun musical celebration that will have the little ones smiling all the way home. Through dance, laughter, and interactive sing-a-longs, Elmo, Telly Monster and the rest of Abby Cadabby’s Sesame Street friends teach her what Christmas means to them.

The Christmas Market, located on the park’s Bayside Pathway, features unique artisans and culinary delights. At this festive, bustling market, guests can find one-of-a-kind gifts and dine on scrumptious holiday delights.

Plus, enjoy a delicious dinner of Christmas favorites with Santa and Mrs. Claus during Santa’s Fireside Feast, a charming, warm-hearted holiday experience. Meet Santa himself, and listen to a classic holiday poem told onstage as never before to create Christmas memories that will last a lifetime. This sumptuous, all-you-can-eat seasonal meal takes place weekends of SeaWorld’s Christmas Celebration. Reservations are required, and include reserved seating at select holiday shows. To book your reservation, visit SeaWorldOrlando.com.

Disclosure: my family was provided a complimentary viewing of the events mentioned above. All opinions are my own.

They’re BAAAACK – Disney Dooney & Bourke 2013 Tinker Bell Half Marathon Bags!

5 December 2012 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

The Tinker Bell Disney Dooney & Bourke Bags are perhaps the most asked-about designs of all the Disney Dooneys to date. I SO wish they’d release them as a regular bag as well, but until then, you can snag one by registering for the 2013 Tinker Bell Half Marathon at Disneyland – taking place January 19-20 next year. By extremely popular demand, runDisney has decided to re-release the commemorative Tink Dooney & Boourke purses that it sold for the inaugural Tinker Bell Half Marathon in Disneyland.

More photos of the bags at last year’s Tinker Bell Half Marathon post – the design is the same with a new 2013 commemorative hang tag.

Purses must be pre ordered through Active.com by a registered participant. Only 2 bags per person. This should eliminate some of the issues from last year, where bags sold out in minutes!

Prices:

$92.00 – Dooney & Bourke Wristlet
$209.00 – Dooney & Bourke Cross Body Purse
$246.00 – Dooney & Bourke Small Shopper

Purses must be picked up at the Disneyland Hotel event merchandise location on Friday, January 18th (11am – 7pm) or Saturday, January 19th (9am – 5pm). Any Dooney & Bourke Purses not picked up at the Expo will not be mailed and will not be refunded. Quantities are limited.

Don’t forget to check DisneyStore.com for sales of select current released Disney Dooney & Bourke purses and Zannaland’s Disney Dooney & Bourke page with ALL handbag photos and info.

*DisneyStore.com links are affiliate links, which means it costs you nothing extra to click or buy, but if you do, I get a small commission. Thanks for reading!

Study Scareonomics at Monsters University-Official Poster Released

3 December 2012 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

After sharing several fun images and teaser trailers with alternate endings, Disney-Pixar has now released the official movie poster for Monsters University, starring the voice talents of Billy Crystal and John Goodman. At Monsters University, we’ll see what sort of scare-jinx the pair got into before working together on the Scare Floor. Be sure to check out the official Monsters University campus website too, where you can purchase apparel to show your school spirit!

Like MONSTERS UNIVERSITY on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/PixarMonstersUniversity

MONSTERS UNIVERSITY arrives in theatres everywhere on June 21, 2013!

GIVEAWAY: Epic Mickey 2-The Power of Two Game Plus Oswald Ears

3 December 2012 by Suzannah Otis 71 Comments

Disney’s Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two is shaping up to be THE gift for the holiday season, and now you have a chance to get one of five copies I’m giving away here at Zannaland, thanks to the wonderful folks at Disney Interactive. As if that wasn’t exciting enough, you’ll also get a set of Oswald ears, so you can play your game in style.

I’m going to make entering extra simple, with the use of Rafflecopter below. Just log in using facebook or your email and check off the options for extra entries without leaving this page. The one mandatory entry is leaving a comment on this page. If you need a little inspiration or just want to learn more about the Epic Mickey 2 gameplay, head over to my Epic Mickey 2 review for the game trailer and some gorgeous hi-res photos of the gameplay.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
Best of luck in the giveaway and in saving Wasteland!

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party Delivers Holiday Magic

29 November 2012 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

One of the most common questions I was asked while on the Walt Disney World Moms Panel, and still get asked today, has always been, “Is Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party worth the ticket price?” My answer has always been a resounding, “YES!” This season, my response is the same, it’s so worth it.

There are quite a few beacons which light the way to the holiday season: Starbucks serving their holiday flavors (pro tip: peppermint is actually available year round – shhh!), the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, showcasing the Radio City Rockettes and the famous Santa finale, and of course, the Magic Kingdom’s annual Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, where it snows on Main Street, U.S.A., hot cocoa and cookies are free throughout the park, and holiday magic swirls around you at every turn. Disney does magic better than anyone around, and during the holidays, the pixie dust is increased and the spirit of the season is everywhere.

This year, all the things that make the Christmas Party so great are back again:

Complimentary cookies and hot cocoa
Mickey’s Once Upon A Christmastime Parade
Holiday Wishes Fireworks Spectacular and
Shows and dance parties at the Castle forecourt, Tomorrowland, and Frontierland
Special character meet and greets

My favorites the marching wooden soldiers in the parade, and the beautiful Holiday Wishes fireworks, which always bring a tear to my eye.

This visit, as locals who attend the party yearly, I decided to do something a little different and just roam around and check out the holiday extras around the park. As a result, we stumbled upon the group Rusty Cutlass performing outside of Pirates of the Caribbean. This jaunty band of pirate lads (and lass) were fantastic to experience. My four year-old absolutely loved watching and getting to participate by taking the pirate’s oath and dancing around to the music. They played a mix of holiday classics melded with a Caribbean twist and were just great fun. Be sure to keep an eye out for them on your next visit, and if you love acts like this, which really make Walt Disney World special, be sure to stop by City Hall or Guest Relations and let them know how much you appreciated the performances!

You can watch videos of the parade and party highlights from past years’ posts too. Here are some photos from this year’s party – click any photo to view as a slideshow:

Castle Dream Lights — Merry Christmas from the Place Where Dreams Come True!

Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party — Cinderella Castle Dream Lights

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party tickets may be purchased online for select nights through December 21, 2012.

Disclosure: I was provided complimentary tickets to the party for the purposes of this post. My thoughts and opinions and love of Christmas are my own.

Disney LeSportsac Winter 2012 London Collection

27 November 2012 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

LeSportsac’s collaboration with Disney, using Mary Blair-inspired designs under the “it’s a small world” moniker, is quickly gaining popularity just like the Disney Dooney & Bourke collection has done for the past few years. With the success of the initial summer Disney LeSportsac line, the Fall and Winter line started appearing in Disney parks as well as being available for purchase online.

I was recently in TrenD at Walt Disney World’s Downtown Disney Marketplace, and saw many of the new Winter London collection for sale:

Disney LeSportsac Winter 2012 London — Everyday bag with charm – $98

Keep an eye out for more of these cute designs showing up at a Disney park near you!

Disney’s Art of Animation Celebrates its First Christmas

27 November 2012 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

With such a colorful entrance into the Disney resort family, Art of Animation resort was in my sights to check out for the holidays to see just what Disney had up its sleeve to decorate their newest resort. Being a Value, or Value Plus resort, of course the Christmas decorations will be a little more low-key than say the Deluxe resorts. Still, it was fun to see and the decor definitely fits into the resort’s capture of the animation process.

Like the overall theme of Disney’s Art of Animation, the Christmas decor starts off colorless, like a blank page, with sketches. As you progress through the lobby, color is added and as a fan of rainbow colors and white Christmas trees, I was in heaven! It’s a very fun, colorful display, that just makes you happy. All that’s missing are those fun rainbow candy canes my mom always used to get!

Here is a gallery overview of the holiday decorations and details of Disney’s Art of Animation resort – click any photo to view as a slideshow:

Disney's Art of Animation Christmas twinkling tree

Disney's Art of Animation Christmas — Looking back at the check-in area from Ink & Paint Shop

20th Anniversary Walt Disney World Marathon Disney Dooney and Bourke Bags

20 November 2012 by Suzannah Otis 6 Comments

Keeping up with the tradition of limited edition Disney Dooney and Bourke handbag designs for the Run Disney half marathon races, Disney has come out with a new design for the 20th anniversary of the Walt Disney World Marathon.

A blue bag with various Mickey Mouse silhouettes in different designs, this bag is less about racing icons and more about the Big Cheese himself. There is one version of Mickey in a running pose, which is what sets this design apart from previous Mickey designs. There will also be a special WDW Marathon hang tag as was on the previous RunDisney Dooney & Bourke limited edition bags. limThe pricing for the bags are: $280.00 for the Dooney & Bourke Satchel Purse and $200.00 for the Dooney & Bourke Letter Carrier Purse. The prices include tax and a non-refundable processing fee.

This time around Disney has gotten smart and set up the bags for pre-purchase at their active.com race registration site. There is a maximum 2 bag purchase per registration. Hopefully these new stipulations will ensure less eBay poachers and more fans of the bags themselves.

If you’re ready to run and grab your bags, click here to order.

Don’t forget to check DisneyStore.com for sales of select current released Disney Dooney & Bourke purses and Zannaland’s Disney Dooney & Bourke page with ALL handbag photos and info.

*DisneyStore.com links are affiliate links, which means it costs you nothing extra to click or buy, but if you do, I get a small commission. Thanks for reading!

It’s ICE ICE Baby! – Top 5 Favorite Scenes From Gaylord Palms Merry Madagascar

19 November 2012 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

One of my favorite parts of living in Orlando are the wonderful holiday events and happenings. Gaylord Palms is an absolutely gorgeous resort and it becomes a sparkling jewel for the holidays. My family and I love making ICE! an annual tradition, where over 2 million pounds of ice are carved by skilled Chinese artisans, with a new theme for each holiday season. This year, it’s “Merry Madagascar” and all of your favorites are there; King Julien, Alex, Marty, Gloria, Melman, and of course, MORT! There are SO many amazing things to see at ICE!, I think I took over 100 photos. However, rather than show you everything, I want to share my top 5 scenes, and hopefully entice you to get over to Gaylord Palms and see the rest in person!

My Top 5 Favorite Scenes at Gaylord Palms ICE! – Merry Madagascar

5. Frozen Coconuts!

4. Sparkly Penguins!

3. Pink Eiffel Tower and pastel St. Basil’s!

2. Super Slides!

1. Frozen Waterfall!

But there is much more to the holidays at Gaylord Palms than just ICE! Within the ICE! area, there are also special character greeting photo ops and Gingy’s Gingerbread Decorating, as well as a huge selection of holiday and themed merchandise and a cafe serving holiday treats. In addition, the main atrium lobby has breathtaking Christmas decorations and a nightly Christmas show called Luminescence – featuring The Edge Effect, and the Polar Bear Pursuit Scavenger Hunt. Below is a gallery of some more highlights from Gaylord Palms holiday happenings – click any photo to view as a slideshow:

Gaylord Palms holiday lights — Such a beautiful resort all the time, even more so at the holidays!

Gaylord Palms Holiday decor — The lights and tree in the atrium lobby are just gorgeous. The holiday show is wonderful too.

Gaylord Palms ICE! — Gingy with two of my little Christmas elves.

You can see the rest of my photos on my ICE! 2012 flickr set.

The best way to see all of the wonderful holiday offerings is of course, to stay right at the Gaylord Palms. Guests seeking a complete Christmas experience can purchase special “Christmassy DreamWorks Experience” packages starting at $189.99 per room, per night (for a three night stay)! Packages include unlimited visits to ICE! and a number of other activities, including a ShrekFeast Interactive Character Meal, and more!

ICE! is open daily from Nov. 10, 2012 through Jan. 1, 2013, including holidays. Ticket prices for children start at $9.99, and adult ticket prices start at $18.99. Florida Residents — Save an extra $4 per ticket. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to www.christmasatgaylordpalms.com. ICE! is presented by Coca-Cola.

Disclosure: I was provided tickets to attend a media preview of ICE! but my thoughts and opinions are my own.

Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln: A Powerful Look At Our Nation’s History

15 November 2012 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

In our present day of social media, apps and instant gratification, it can be hard to impart the lessons of our U.S. history and the people that made our land great, in a way that has a memorable effect. Because of this, the motion picture industry can be a powerful tool in bringing stories and history that might not be learned otherwise, to the masses. Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln is a perfect example of this.

Personally, I have always been a fan of history of any kind, and U.S. history was no exception. I loved reading about the development of our country, from colonial times to the pioneers to the creation of the National Parks. When you read about history however, it can be hard to get past the bullet point highlights of a particular time frame or a persona. Abraham Lincoln, known as “Honest Abe” has a reputation few can compare to. Honesty, doing the right thing, and frank candor are what he is known for. This peek into his presidency offers a much more raw and unfiltered look at what actually went on to achieve the end of the Civil War and the ratification of the 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery.

Despite Lincoln’s reputation as an honest and forthright president, the film shows that he did whatever it took to get the 13th Amendment passed, even employing some undesirables to get the signatures he needed. It was a fascinating look at the process and I found myself wanting to learn more about each name and person that appeared on screen. I wanted to know their story, their contribution to our nation, their place in history. I guess perhaps that is the best compliment I can give Lincoln, as a film – the fact that it made me want to go out and learn more.

The cinematography, costumes and overall feel of the film was just wonderful. I loved little details like panning across a planning room with Lincoln and his advisers, and how each gentleman in the room had their own little journal. Just seeing how authentic everything looked was like being able to step back in time to what running the country and living in the 1800’s was really like. I was also relieved that, although the loss of life in the seemingly endless battles of the Civil War is important to note, it wasn’t the focal point of the movie, and the blood and gore was kept to a minimum (but it is there in places). The way they handled Lincoln’s assassination was extremely well done and I was impressed as well.

The performances by one and all were simply flawless. Daniel Day Lewis seems to be born to play our 16th president, in almost an eerie way. Sally Field was amazing and powerful as Mary Todd Lincoln and each additional character lent something important to the screen. It was truly an ensemble cast and the writing made it enjoyable from start to finish. I loved the little stories Lincoln would tell and how his cronies would groan and get frustrated with him telling them. His jokes injected a much-needed levity to the subject matter and seeing the human side of him as a father and husband was a unique insight.

I loved the film and I cannot wait to see it again, own it when it comes out on DVD, and begin my quest to learn more about our country’s history. I recommend this to anyone and everyone, it should be required viewing to appreciate and honor the story of the United States; to learn and grow from our history.

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Lincoln opens in theatres on Friday, Novermber 16. In preparation for the release of the film, you can now go behind-the-scenes of the movie with this exclusive interactive book “Lincoln: Discover the Story.” See how a crucial time in America’s history was recreated and brought to the screen with beautiful photos, art, interviews, music and more!

Available for now for FREE download for the iPad: http://bit.ly/QbEVRP