I love that Disney is rereleasing it’s classics!  For the first time in 7 years, you are now able to get your hands on Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs.  Not only is this being rereleased, it comes in an awesome combo back.  It doesn’t matter if you have a regular DVD player or if you have a BluRay, there is a disc in here for you!  The packaging is really nice, but you will be floored at what you find inside.  There is a ton of information to sort through.  My kids just like the DVD.  I love all the extras (I really wonder if Walt Disney could see the future, because there is just so much that is perfect for extras on the DVD).  Some of the special stuff on this DVD include High Definition 7.1 sound, a new music video, Disneyview, games, and view into the backstage.  Having seen this many times over on VHS tapes, the quality is of this DVD is thousand times better.

This classic would make a great Christmas gift this holiday season and should be every little one’s holiday stocking.   This DVD does not disappoint.

DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: http://cmp.ly/2

Even wonder how the studios make animated movies? If you do The Alchemy of Animation is a book you should read. This book explores the role of the directors, story artists, songwriters, and animators who each play role in the final product that we all see at the theater.  We get too see the digital techniques of filmmaking and behind-the-scenes work from many of the current Disney films.  We get to see scenes from Chicken Little, Meet the Robinsons, and Bolt.  We even get to see the stop-motion animation of Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach.  I knew that a lot of work went in behind the scenes to make these movies as great as they are, but until now, I really never understood HOW much work.  There is just so much stuff that goes on behind the scenes until now.  If you are interested in animation or how these blockbuster cartoons are done, then you need to check out The Alchemy of Animation.  It is definitely a great book to look at and read.

Let me start by saying up until now, I was not a huge fan of Barbie. As a kid, I didn’t really play with her, and Madison is too little for them. I actually had no idea that Barbie even had DVDs out (and sold more than 58 million units!) till I came across Barbie & The Diamond Castle.  I was all ready to not like it.  However, I was surprised to find that I did like it (and the really sad thing is that I have one of the songs stuck in my head, and we watched it over two hours ago!).  The story was fast moving enough that it kept Madison’s attention.  Will absolutely loved the dogs in this movie.  Ever time they came on the screen, he screamed and giggled.  The animation was great — they almost looked real.  At no point did the movie get too scary either (sometimes when bad things happen in movies it scares the kids).  I like the moral of the story too.  It was about friendship being the greatest gift of all.  The DVD didn’t really push the moral either, but with the great story, really got it across.  The music in this movie is good too (see note above about having it stuck in my head).  Madison was singing the songs from it immediately after watching it.  After watching this movie, we will definitely be getting more Barbie movies.

If you have seen the movie Toy Story, then you want to get this Disney book for your little one. It is a great companion to the movie. The Toy Story book follows the storyline of the movie.  We watch Andy get Buzz Lightyear and how jealous the toys were especially Woody.  You get to read about the adventure Woody and Buzz go on while trying to make it back to Andy after an accident.  The pictures in the book seem to right from the movie.  Madison like to have this book when she is watching the movie and follow along.

This is a show moms will enjoy as much as their kids. Lazytown is was created and is filmed in Iceland. The creator is Magnus Scheving. He is both a professional athlete and aerobic champion there (and he’s really good looking when not in his Sportacus costume). The show is about the struggle of being lazy and being healthy. Some of the characters you meet on this show include Stephanie (she’s the pink haired girl), Sportacus (the good looking health conscious superhero), and Robbie Rotten (the villian who likes to be lazy and eat unhealthy. These are all human characters. The other characters are a mix of live action puppets and computer generated animation. The main goal of this show is to promote healthy eating and lots of activity. For example, instead of looking for cruise deals, Sportacus would be off swimming. There are many learning goals that this show achieves (taken from the Noggin website):

• Value healthful habits, physical activity, and joy of effort
  • Benchmarks supported in particular include:
    • Recognize physical outcomes of healthful habits and being active.
    • Appreciate the fun inherent in physical activity.
• Cultivate healthful eating habits
  • Benchmarks supported in particular include:
    • Eat balanced diet.
    • Understand food is necessary for health and growth.
• Explore a variety of movements, indoors and outdoors
  • Benchmarks supported in particular include:
    • Run, climb, jump, balance, hop, and swing safely
    • Express self with controlled movements.
    • Practice.
• Interact with movable objects
  • A benchmark supported in particular is:
    • Bounce, roll, catch, throw, and kick balls.

If you want to get your kids to play outside more, have them watch this show.