I tend to find that when I make a wishlist, I babble on about what the things are I want and why I want them. The truth is, I want them because they’re pretty and because they’re Disney. However I’m trying to be really good with money right now and so I’m not buying anything. Some of these items appeared on my last wishlist post and some are new. It’s probably not even everything I’d like. However they are a combination of Beauty and the Beast items (my favourite) and Christmas decorations.
Wednesday Wishlist – Christmas in July
Yes I know, they’re Christmas ornaments and its early to think about Christmas but the Disney Store released their ornaments last week and I just had to make a collection of some of the pieces I’d like! To be truthful I tend to avoid wishlists these days as they only make me want to spend money, but these are the one treat I seem to give myself each year. That said, I missed quite a few I would have liked last year and I hope that won’t be the case this year.
So my top pick on this particular wishlist is Belle (no surprise) and Vanessa. These are two characters I have actually cosplayed as and my top pick when it comes to characters generally. There is a singing Belle ornament too but while I like the fountain scene, I think I prefer the simple Belle version. As for Vanessa, its so unusual to get anything Ursula even, let alone her so I need this!
The other ornaments are definitely all secondary wants. The rose however is probably top of those. Again, Beauty and the Beast themed, I have a love of all things rose themed too. As for the rest, they are to fill gaps in my character themes or just because I like them. We do have Ariel already, but not as a mermaid. We also don’t have anything UP, Chip and Dale, or Jaq and Gus (though we do have Cinderella). Chip and Dale have a special place in my heart right now as they remind me very much of my girls. Finally that leaves Tinker Bell and while I do think we have a Tink decoration already, I love this one especially. I’m pretty sure there is a similar Disney tradition ornament which I would love.
I think a few have disappeared off the Disney Store website already so I may have missed a few I like. In fact, there are a few from last year floating around on Ebay so I may even do a second wishlist with those included too.
Travel Diary – 19th June 16 – Paris Day Three
So I’ve recapped on Day One and Two of our holiday so far and this is Three! Though I didn’t mention before, the week before we went away, I was really ill. By the Friday we left, I was feeling a bit better but I was fairly dosed up on paracetamol. However by Saturday I wasn’t feeling much better and I’d managed to infect Nat, so Sunday morning we were both feeling a bit rough, especially after our late night. We got up in time to go to the convention but in the end both of us agreed that other than some autographs in the afternoon, there wasn’t much happening at the convention that day that we wanted to do. In the end we decided to do some more sightseeing, checking our bags into the convention first as we were moving hotel that day. We headed to McDonalds and grabbed a quick breakfast, which luckily left us both feeling a bit better.
We caught the train from Versailles, back towards the centre of Paris and here we walked to the Louvre. This was a place I had hopped to see on my last trip and had been unable to, so it was top of my list when it came to places to visit still. The weather was nice and so walking was fine. We made sure we kept a bottle of water with us and plenty of pain killers, just taking our time and sitting every now and again. We also thought about visiting Yellowstone & Tetons Family Adventure after we finished this trip, just gathering some friends and having fun touring!
After seeing the Louvre (only from the outside) we decided to walk up towards the Arc De Triomphe, along the Champs-Élysées. It took us about an hour in total, though we did stop off at the Disney Store on the way.
Back at the convention, we got our last few autographs and then checked out with our bags. We now had the long journey from Versailles to CDG airport, where we would catch a shuttle bus to our hotel for the next two nights. Unfortunately the shuttle bus wasn’t the easiest thing to figure out and at first we ended up on the wrong one. However eventually we arrived at our hotel and checked in. The restaurant was closed by that time but they made us up a starter plate and dessert plate to take back to our room. Sadly the food wasn’t really anything we liked and by trying to manage some of it, we put ourselves off even eating the desserts! In the end we just headed to bed, feeling ill, cold and tired but knowing Disney was the next day and trying to look forward to it.
Tsum Tsum Tag
1.How many Tsum Tsum’s have you got?
Lots, far too many to be honest! I think close to 200 though.
2. What was your first?
Our first official Tsum Tsum was bought in Florida. I’m pretty sure it was the Cinderella collection, though we bought so many during the holiday, that I can’t be sure (there were some Toy Story ones from Disney Store and a few from Target). However unofficially I bought Anna and Elsa from Ebay, not realising they were “fan made”, even before we went to Florida.
3. Do you have a full set?
Yes, lots actually. If I like a set, I tend to buy them all as it’s hard not to. However in some cases I will just grab the main characters.
4. What is your favourite set?
When it’s released, Beauty and the Beast will be I’m sure. However in the meantime it’s probably The Little Mermaid or Tangled sets.
5. Who is your most wanted Tsum Tsum?
Belle from BatB when it’s released, but otherwise Hiro and Honey Lemon as we missed them very early on and need them to collect our BH6 collection.
6. What set do you want them to make?
I think Sleeping Beauty would be pretty great, just to get the Fairies and of course Maleficent. Or maybe a Tinker Bell collection that featured her fairy friends. To be honest, once the Beauty and the Beast collection is released, I’ll be happy. (After thought – Hercules!!! I would love that)
7. Do you collect just Disney or do you collect the Star Wars and Marvel ones?
I’m not at all interested in the Star Wars ones and neither are the kids. However I did pick up a few for Chris. He has Boba Fett, Darth Vader, Darth Maul and a Storm Trooper. He also has Venom from the Marvel ones. We do have several of the Marvel ones, especially the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy, but not all.
8. Do you have any ones from Clintons/Target/Other non Disney Store shops?
I prefer to get them from the Disney Store but our nearest one is over an hour away and postage online can be frustrating. We live 2 minutes away from a Clintons though so often we do grab them there, especially if we missed them at the Disney Store.
9. Do you dislike any Tsum Tsums?
I wouldn’t say I dislike any but I’m less fussed about several. I haven’t got any of the Jungle Book ones, I barely picked up any Nightmare Before Christmas ones and since I haven’t seen Zootropolis yet, I haven’t bought any of those yet either.
10. Who do you think they should have release with previous sets?
Not that I can think of! Thought honestly a part of me wishes there were 101 different dalmatians released. I might actually have been tempted to get them all (even though I definitely can’t afford that!) I do think it’s a shame we don’t always get the whole sets in the UK (King of Hearts from Alice being an example) and also the variants like Halloween versions or whatever else.
My Christmas Wishlist 2015
Over the next few weeks I’m going to be sharing some of my ideas for gift guides, including “for him”, “for her”, “for kids” etc. However I wanted to start off with a wish list of my own! This is my Christmas Wishlist 2015.
As you will see, even at a glance, my wishlist is almost entirely filled with Disney. This is because Disney is probably my biggest fandom love, followed immediately by Harry Potter (which there are also several items for). Anyway, let’s get started!
On the left hand side of the guide, you will see an Inside Out board game and a Ticket to Ride board game. I absolutely love playing board games, both with my family and with my friends. Though we already own a version of both these games, I would love these versions (just like I would love Disney Villains monopoly still). Inside Out seems like such a great idea for Game of Life and a United Kingdom version of Ticket to Ride sounds fun! On that same side you will also spot two DVDs, Inside Out and Tomorrowland. Inside Out isn’t released yet but Tomorrowland has been for a while, I’d like both to add to my every growing Disney DVD collection. Finally on that side is a Thomas Kinkade Disney calendar. I had the mini version last year but I would love the full size version as my main calendar this year. I love the art work and even better when you’re done with it you could always frame the pages.
On the right hand side I have clothes. The dress is an Alice print dress from Hot Topic which I absolutely love. I have another dress from Hot Topic in this style and its my favourite Disney dress. I also have this exact print in a scarf (which I’m wearing now) and I love it. Not only that it’s black and I know I’d get lots of wear out of it, even in winter paired with a cardigan and tights. Secondly there is a set of PJs and these are Beauty and the Beast from Topshop. Last year I treated myself to a pair of PJs from Topshop and though they had cuff bottoms on the trousers (which I thought I would hate) I loved them and as such would love this pair for this year.
Heading for the middle of the wishlist you can see its basically an array of ornaments and Pop Funko figures. However there is a Harry Potter umbrella in there too. I love the Marauders Map print and I know I would get loads of use out of this – especially living in the UK where rain is our standard. Also not an ornament is the Disney Villains bag. This is from Loungefly and have I loved their stuff for a long time. In this style there is also a Disney Villains wallet but as it doesn’t have card slots I know I wouldn’t use it much. This bag however is amazing and I would love to use it as my every day handbag. Not technically an ornament, this candle is also on my wishlist. It’s available from the Disney Store and comes in a few different colours. I’m not a huge candle fan but I find myself more drawn to them this time of year. Plus it’s Disney. No brainer.
Finally, onto the ornaments in the middle. There are four Disney Traditions/Showcase ornaments and some of these are firm favourites while others are new to my wish list. I have loads of Beauty and the Beast ornaments already but since it’s my favourite, I’d love to have them all. The ornament of Belle with the Beast has been on my wish list since last Christmas so hopefully this year I’ll get lucky and manage to get it. The one of Mrs Potts is new (or at least I haven’t seen it before) and since I have one of Lumiere and Cogsworth together, I’d love to have this too. That then leaves the Villains. Maleficent joined my wishlist over a year ago, for my birthday last year when we watched the new Maleficent movie. I love this figure so much but sadly it went out of stock last Christmas and I ended up with the Evil Queen instead. It’s now back in stock in most places so I’d love to add it to my collection. Then there is the “hag”, who is the Evil Queen from Snow White. I’m not exactly sure what draws me to this ornament as it’s pretty ugly but I love it nonetheless. Next comes the Pop Funko and sure enough one is Disney (sort of) and another is Harry Potter. I started out my collection of Pop Funkos with only Disney and I’ve tried hard to resist branching out into other Fandoms as its a disaster waiting to happen. However we do have several others, including some Harry Potter. I love this Voldemort figure and it would definitely be my next pick to add to the collection, though I would happily take any I do have (which is only Harry and Dumbledore). Regina Mills aka the Evil Queen from Once Upon a Time is another figure I’d love. She is my favourite character by far and I hope to cosplay his exact outfit someday. While OUAT isn’t technically Disney, its definitely a branch of it and therefore adding the OUAT figures to my collection is a must! Finally that leaves Katniss Everdeen. Until a few days ago I didn’t even know Hunger Games existed as Pop Funko figures. Now I know, I sort of want them all. Katniss is available in several different variations but I think this is my favourite – like I said though, I would take them all.
I could have gone on and on but hey, Christmas is about giving not receiving – so instead of concentrating on what I’d like, I’ll soon be moving on to what you can get for others!
35/52
Bank Holiday Weekend – Saturday
It’s Saturday night and I’m coming to you live from a London Travelodge!! We’ve had a fab day, traveling on the train from Newark to London, then checking in and enjoying London. The train journey went great and everything was on time for a change. We traveled the tube to our Travelodge in Hounslow Central though and this took ages!
On the way back, we got off at Knightsbridge and met up with my friend Tim for lunch at the Disney Cafe in Harrods. The food was pretty expensive and the cafe was nothing special, but the service and food was good and the girls got “free” Disney ears. Afterwards we went to Harrods Disney Store. It was much nicer than a lot of Disney Stores I’ve been in and they did seem to have things that other stores didn’t. I bought Megan a beautiful jacket and to be fair to Lily, she got some Disney Infinity characters. Finally we headed out and went for a wander, before deciding to grab coffee and sit for while to chat. At 5pm Tim needed to go so we said our farewells. The girls and I did the London Eye (thanks to Avios Reward Scheme) which was great and then finally we traveled back to the Travelodge for dinner.
Dinner was very average but it hit the spot. We then went back to the room and collapsed. We’re now heading to bed, though we’ll probably watch X Factor first!!
Week 21 – Monday Round-up
Last week was another busy week but not as crazy as the one before. Monday to Friday were school as usual and Chris was working all five too. I don’t really remember what I did for most of Monday but I know it was computer based – blogging, uploading pictures and catching up on stuff. Nat came around in the evening so we had a good catch up. Tuesday was similar too but it started off with McDonalds breakfast and taking Chris to work (after the usual school drop off) and then resulted in watching lots of OUAT (I caught up to the end of season) and having a bath. The kids came home with their dad but pretty much went straight to bed, while Chris and I spent the evening catching up on TV – in our grumpy wear.
On Wednesday it was Lily’s class assembly and I agreed to work in the office too. I spent all morning at school, waited for lunch too as Megan was having a sale (hand made items from school) and then headed off to Mum’s to spend the afternoon there and have a cup of tea. After I picked up the girls and we headed home, monging out and doing silly quizzes on Facebook.
On Thursday I had a day at home and while I had lots of blogging planned, next door being super loud and a pain in the ass meant that I didn’t get a lot done. I headed out early to go shopping and then pick the girls up from school, just to get away from the noise. On the plus side my new dress for my birthday party arrived and I’m super thrilled with it. Now I just hope I can make my face and hair look good for the evening, as usually it never all comes together. On Thursday evening we all packed ready for the weekend, we picked out where we wanted to eat and ordered vouchers from Tesco. The next morning, Friday, the girls and Chris went off to work/school and I finished getting organised. I did some blog work and made sure my camera was charged etc. before heading off to get the girls and then go to my mum’s.
Megan, Lily and I spent the evening at mum’s house, where she made us lasagne and we lounged around. At 8pm we headed out to get Chris from work and then set off to Toddington where we would be staying the night. It was about 10-10.30pm when we got to the Travelodge so we all settled in for the night and got to sleep. In the morning we got ready fairly early and then headed out to North Ealing station, where mum dropped us off and we caught the tube into London. We headed for the Excel, which took quite some time, seeing more cosplayers the nearer we got.
We arrived with near perfect timing for MCM Comic Con as we didn’t have to wait long for the doors to be opened and the “general” tickets to be let in. It did take some time to filter through but it was steady moving and really didn’t matter. We looked around about a third of the stalls/stores before deciding we needed lunch. Food was expensive but there was plenty of room to sit and it even looked like we could have taken our own food with us to save on cost. We then wandered around the rest of the stalls but the kids were pretty bored, my bag was heavy and a lot of this distracted from the fun. I really wanted to get some autographs but the place you bought the autograph passes from had a queue of an hour and a half, even though the people I wanted to meet had no queue. In the end I passed up on meeting Cruella De Vil and Ursula from OUAT and we just continued to wander around. Chris bought a new board game, Lily bought a Honey Lemon plush, Megan bought a Cinderella Pop Funko and I bought three Pop Funkos myself – Belle, Cogsworth and Daryl on his chopper.
We were finished looking around by about 3.30pm which left two hours until our dinner reservation. We decided to head for Oxford Street and the Disney Store, even though I knew we probably wouldn’t buy anything. After a wander around there, where we didn’t buy anything, we headed to Lush instead. I’d read a few blog posts about The Comforter being made into a shower gel and that it was only available in Oxford Street branch. I wanted to get my hands on some and since we were nearby it made sense. Though I had skimmed over the information in a blog post, I hadn’t realised that Oxford Street actually had over 200 new products in there, unavailable anywhere else at present. I couldn’t help myself and before I knew it I was stocked up on loads of new stuff, totaling almost £45! (It is my birthday this coming week though…).
After lunch it was time to head for dinner and we decided it would be nice to walk. It took about 10 minutes from where we were so that wasn’t bad and mum was waiting for us when we got there. We had a lovely meal with amazing service (a rarity for our recent trips to London) and though the bill came to £80 as it was, I left an additional £10 because we’d all enjoyed it so much. Our meal was at Bella Italia on Irving Street, in case anyone wants to give it a go! Finally after dinner we headed for Her Majesty’s Theatre which was only a couple of minutes away and got to our seats. People were sat in them which really peed me off but they moved when we asked them to so…
Phantom of the Opera was great, though not as good as I’d remembered. The music and cast was amazing but it seemed like they’d changed some of the pacing, ordering and certain other bits and I was just left feeling a bit disappointed. That said, it was really fantastic and the kids both loved it so that made me enjoy it even more. When the show finished we all headed off to catch the tube back to the car and then mum drove to a different Travelodge (M4) where we were staying that night. The kids were exhausted and it was late but they fell asleep as soon as their head touched the pillow and before the lights were even out. Chris and I weren’t far behind them as it had been a long day and we hadn’t slept much the night before.
In the morning the girls went to mum’s room for breakfast and I went for a shower. Chris brought us coffee and bacon butties which was really lovely. We then headed off home, fairly late by our standards as we’d all managed a lay-in but it wasn’t long after 1pm by the time we got back to Lincoln. We immediately switched to my car and headed home. We all had a light lunch and then chilled out for the afternoon. We ordered takeaway for dinner and just hung out together as a family. Once the girls were in bed, Chris and I caught up on TV before grabbing a fairly early night since it had been a long weekend.
21/52
This weekend we went to London for my birthday treat (my birthday isn’t until Thursday). No trip to London would be complete without a visit to the Disney Store and we went to the one I love most – Oxford Street. Did you know there was a Cinderella’s carriage inside there right now? Carriage one side, pumpkin the other. Just like the Cinderella exhibition we went to!
Week 19 – Monday Round-up
All weeks seem very samey at the moment so I’m sorry if these posts are a bit of a bore. Monday this week was Bank Holiday so it was a short school week and that’s always nice. The girls were with their dad on Monday and so after he picked them up, Chris and I went out for the day. We started by going to visit his Nan and then headed over to Lincoln where we were going to the cinema to see Avengers again and then on to Pizza Express for dinner. It was also May Fourth which for most means Star Wars Day, but for me it’s my dad’s birthday and since he died, its always been a day for reflection. It was nice to keep busy though and have a sort of “date day” with Chris. We ended our day with an ice cream and a walk through Lincoln, before meeting the girls and their dad to switch and go home. Once the girls were in bed we spent the evening catching up on TV like S.H.I.E.L.D., Gotham and Game of Thrones.
Tuesday was back to school and back to work for everyone, including me. Chris was on an early shift so he was out of the house early, but the girls and I headed to school as normal. After dropping them off in their classrooms, I headed to the office to help out. I stayed the whole day and even ended up covering a lunch shift in the dining room. After school the girls and I headed home, getting dinner and then getting homework done. The girls also had a bath because it was class photos at school the next day. When Chris got home, he had dinner and then we spent the evening catching up on Arrow together.
Wednesday was a nice relaxing day, spent catching up on blogging and everything around the house. Chris was at work and the girls were at school, so it was nice to have time to myself and I even started the day with a bacon butty and a cup of tea. I made curry for dinner, so it was easy when we all got home and once I’d picked up the kids from school it meant we didn’t have much to do. Again once Chris was home, we caught up on Arrow, trying to make sure we’re up to date by the finale!
On Thursday Chris was on a later shift and so once I took the girls to school, he was still here when I got back. He did have a driving lesson though so he wasn’t around for long. Once he was gone, I settled down to watch all my TV shows. I kept meaning to go and vote but ended up procrastinating the day away. In the end I collected the girls from school and then went to vote instead.
It was actually pretty interesting going with the girls as it sparked some conversation between us, making it really good fun. We came home and had dinner, before tidying up the girls room – putting away all their clothes and giving the room a hoover. Nat came round in the evening and we spent the evening catching up and having a gossip.
Friday came really quick and once I’d dropped off the kids at school, I came home to spend time with Chris before he went to work. I then made some jewellery orders and tidied up the house. Finally I went out to PC World to do a Mystery Shopper visit and then on to the girls at school to collect them. On the way home we stopped at Aldi and it was there we met Amy and Olivia who were visiting for the weekend. We all went back to our house and hung out, Olivia going to bed first, followed later by the girls. Amy and I ordered Indian takeaway and spent the evening chatting, then when Chris got home we looked for the most awful thing we could watch on TV.
In the morning we all got up and got ready, heading out to Nottingham where we would see Disney on Ice. Chris didn’t come as he had work but the rest of us went to Capital FM Arena in Nottingham, for the show at 11am. Everyone really enjoyed it and I got some lovely pictures. I even posted about it over on Twice the Mum. The show took us up till about 1pm and we’d already decided we’d go to Five Guys for lunch and then on to the Disney Store in Victoria Shopping Centre after that. It was about a ten minute walk for lunch and then another ten minute wait in the queue. It definitely wasn’t as nice as in America but it was still good. After lunch we all headed to the shopping centre but to be honest there wasn’t an awful lot we wanted (I just placed a Disney Store order last week) so we just picked up a couple of Tsum Tsums and then headed back to the car. On the way home we decided we fancied Starbucks so swung via Lincoln. We stopped to get drinks and by that time it was 5pm so we knew it would be almost bedtime for the girls by the time we got back and settled. Olivia had some toast before heading to bed and the girls waited a bit longer to make sure she was asleep. Amy and I ordered a pizza to share and then sat chatting and watching rubbish TV again for the evening.
On Sunday morning, I managed a bit of a lie-in but mostly I was awake and just too lazy to get out of bed. However I did get up and made everyone a cup of tea/coffee and then we all sat relaxed. At midday, Megan and I took Amy and Olivia to the station. Lily stayed at home with Chris. After dropping them off, Megan and I went to Aldi and did the week shop, making sure we got stuff for a roast dinner that day too. The afternoon was spent just hanging out together as a family, relaxing and not doing much. Eventually though Megan and I got up to make dinner and then we all sat together and ate. Afterwards we had waffle with ice cream and chocolate sauce, along with a glass of wine for Chris and I. It was really a perfect evening. The girls headed to bed and Chris went for a bath so I went on my computer for a while. After that we watched Dredd and then S.H.I.E.L.D. before heading to bed.
Another nice week that seemed dull at the time but always seems fuller when I write about it. No idea what this week will bring but I’ve got a feeling it will be a busy one.