Halloween

Grim Grinning Ghosts, Come Out to Socialize!

31 October 2009 by Suzannah Otis 3 Comments

“When hinges creak, in doorless chambers. And strange and frightening sounds echo through the halls. Whenever candlelights flicker, where the air is deathly still, that is the time when ghosts are present. Practicing their terror, with ghoulish delight!

…Your cadaverous parlour, betrays an aura of foreboding, almost as though you sense a disquieting metamorphosis.”

With these famous lines from one of Walt Disney’s greatest attractions, the Haunted Mansion, I thought I’d celebrate Halloween in ZannaLand by sharing some photos of our family during our visit to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at the Magic Kingdom. Don’t forget to check out my other Halloween posts showcasing the Headless Horseman ride, part one of the Boo to You Parade, part two featuring the Villains, and the Halloween Castle!

Our darling Cereal Killer, Coraline, my ghoulish — Our darling Cereal Killer, Coraline, my 'Scare-ista' costume, and Spider-Mickey!

This was the sign I made to go with my costume, hope some Disney fanatics get the jokes! — This was the sign I made to go with my costume, hope some Disney fanatics get the references!

Continue for more pictures >>

HalloWishes Cinderella Castle Views

8 October 2009 by Suzannah Otis 4 Comments

Well, normally by now I would’ve written a much more in-depth, hopefully interesting blog entry…but I sit with tens of thousands of other hopefuls waiting this week for word about who advanced to the second round for the Disney Moms Panel 2010 edition. So forgive me but I’m just a tad distracted and unable to focus for some reason! 😉 I’m not even anticipating making the cut, but the anticipation is a killer!

However, I still had some pictures to share with you from our night at Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, so I thought that’d help pass the time. This year we were totally in the wrong place at the wrong time when we heard the announcement that Wishes was starting. We’d just gone on the Tomorrowland Transit Authority, and were about to head out trick-or-treating – I didn’t even realize what time it was! As a result, we were clamoring to get to Main Street to be able to view the fireworks and apparently so was everyone else in Tomorrowland.

There was a traffic jam on the bridge leading to the Hub in front of Cinderella Castle and we were trapped. Not only were we trapped, we were stuck right in front of the huge rock formations between the bridge and Stitch’s Great Escape. So we had virtually no view of the fireworks. Let this be a lesson to you – plan ahead! 😉 Rather than let our position spoil our fun, I just focused on the Castle instead, and snapped the photos you see below. Since that’s my favorite part of the Magic Kingdom, I figured I probably wasn’t alone and some other people would enjoy the montage.

Click to view the photos…

Boo to You 2-Villains Edition!

6 October 2009 by Suzannah Otis 4 Comments

When last we left, the first Disney Villains float had just turned the corner on Main Street in the Magic Kingdom. Well continue if you dare, foolish mortals – to see the rest of Disney’s Boo to You Parade complete with Villains, ghosts and gravediggers! As always, click to enlarge the photos, and enjoy!

Pain and Panic from Hercules on the back of the first Villains float

Villains storm Main Street-Can you name them all?

Click to continue with the parade of photos…

Magic Kingdom’s Boo to You Parade! (Part 1 of 2)

5 October 2009 by Suzannah Otis 3 Comments

My family visited Magic Kingdom on September 25, 2009 for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and shared the night with some very special guests – Disney’s Moms Panel! Almost all of the moms (and dads) were able to reunite that weekend and had a great view from the Main Street Train Station for the Boo to You parade. I thought I’d share some photos from one of the best parades at Walt Disney World. Since there is so much action in this parade, I decided to split it up into two posts. This first entry features all the classic Disney characters, and the next post will feature the Disney Villains and the Haunted Mansion residents. Click the photos to enlarge – and enjoy!

Magic Kingdom's entrance in Halloweenie splendor!

Fog rises from the Magic Kingdom as spirits gather for Halloween!

The Disney Moms Panel gathered for the show

I was unable to get a good picture of the Headless Horseman this parade, but you can watch my video from 2007 to experience it!

See more of the parade…

Too Cool for Ghouls…Halloween Help?

17 September 2009 by Suzannah Otis 6 Comments

I announced earlier this week on Twitter that the family is heading to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. Personally *I* am super excited about it because it’s one of my favorite events at Disney World. The Boo To You parade is worth the price of admission alone, I feel. The parade starts with the Headless Horseman fiercely galloping down from Frontierland to Main Street on his horse (a horse who’s only job is this parade!). My next favorite part of the parade are the gravediggers from Haunted Mansion. They will definitely keep you alert as they stomp and drag their shovels along the pavement – causing sparks to fly!

a blur of gravediggers (& the Malfoy family in the background!)

Then of course there is the trick-or-treating throughout the park. Various spots are set up in the different lands where kids and adults can collect candy treats together (there are non-candy alternatives available at each location as well). My favorite section is the walkway from Toontown to Tomorrowland, where characters from Alice in Wonderland are set up. During our first time at the party, they actually had an entire tea cup from the Mad Tea Cups ride FILLED with candy. The spooky-themed HalloWishes fireworks display is a spectacular end to the night, it really can’t be missed.

We didn’t make it last year, because I was 9 months pregnant and had our 3rd child on October 28, 2008. For that reason I was even more excited to attend this year. My original plan was for all of us to be different characters from Alice in Wonderland. A few years ago we saw an entire family dressed up as the Malfoys from the Harry Potter movies and I loved it. I don’t think that’s going to work out, time just snuck up on us, but maybe next year! My daughter has decided to be Coraline– her haircut makes it a perfect choice. I know it’s not a Disney character, but the director also did The Nightmare Before Christmas, and it’s unique enough that she probably won’t see 20 of herself there. I haven’t figured out the baby yet, but I will find something cute I’m sure. My problem is my ten year-old.

Last year with his longer hair, he was a PERFECT fit for playing Heath Ledger’s Joker from Batman. Once we got him all dressed and made up, he was less than thrilled about actually going out. So it’s no surprise that this year, while he’s excited to go to the party at the Magic Kingdom, he does NOT want to dress up. I decided to ask Twitter for some ideas on how to help, and thought I’d ask here as well. Of course I’m not going to *force* him to dress-up, but I’d like to win the challenge of finding something that actually excites him enough to want to wear. My friend Kristen on Twitter suggested an “I’m too cool to dress up” t-shirt, but I wonder if he thinks he’s too cool to wear an “I’m too cool” shirt?! Help me, friends of ZannaLand, you’re my only hope! 😉

And the winner is….

16 September 2009 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

Main Street Train Station in the Magic Kingdom – Halloween style! (click to enlarge)
Thanks to all who voted in the poll – Halloween won as of right now, but you can keep voting!