F M N

    Hello again Blogland!  I was asked by a friend to share one of my family events with you all.  I wish I could take credit for the main idea, but I can’t.  At my house, we have Family Movie Nights, or FMN for short.  In 2012, my family took our first Walt Disney World vacation.  (Best money spent EVER!)  For 2011 and part of 2012 while we were counting down the days until our arrival, we decided to start a tradition to help pass the time.  I’m a member of a Disney message board called DisBoards and that is where I got the initial idea.  

    Basically, we choose a Disney film (new or old, long or short)  and theme  a night’s events around it.  We will prepare themed foods and snacks, put up decorations, make crafts, sing songs, dress up, and just spend some time together as a family.  Don’t get turned off or feel like you aren’t up to the challenge.  The one rule we follow for these is that we try to do them as inexpensively and as simply as possible.  I’m talking, low budget ($10-20 or less) and a quick and easy cleanup.  With some planning ahead and a few trips, usually to the dollar store, you can start FMNs of your own!

   Thus far, I think we have done...Jurassic Park, The Sword In The Stone, Sleeping Beauty, Brave, Monster’s Inc, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Hercules, The Lorax, The Haunted Mansion, Batman- The Dark Knight, and The Muppets to name a few.  Let me tell you, my kids have really enjoyed these movie nights and it has been great time for us to spend together as a family.  It was also a great way to introduce the kids to older Disney characters from our childhood before we saw them in the parks on vacation.  I know, I know, some of these were not Disney films, and that is okay too.  Let me give you all an example, just to set you on the right track…

    Our first FMN we watched The Sword In The Stone.  It is DH’s favorite Disney movie and turned out to be a big hit with Monster and Bear as well.  We did this on a Friday night so it didn’t interfere with the school schedule and the dinner we had on this night was planned ahead as part of our meal plan.  I printed pictures of the main characters and hung them around the living room.  I also typed up a menu so there would be a list of all the themed food.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had Merlin’s Moat Water (Ginger Ale with a few drops of green food coloring),

 Sir Kay’s Roast Chicken (a simple rotisserie chicken from Wal Mart) ,

Wart’s Squire Squares (roasted potatoes cut into cubes),

Excalibur Cakes (home made rice krispie treats wrapped in fondant and dusted with gray cake glitter to look like a stone and topped with a fondant wrapped brownie dusted with blue cake glitter to look like snow, stabbed through with a sword toothpick for Excalibur) ,

 Mad Madam Mim’s Monster Salad (just plain salad we made and I taped pictures of the creatures that Mim turns into in the film around the sides of the bowl),

 and Arthur’s Royal Crowns (jello jigglers cut into crown shapes).  This may sound complicated, but I assure you it wasn’t.  Dinner was great, everyone ate up during the film and we all enjoyed singing the magic words and bursting into giggles every time we got tongue tied.  That night wasn’t perfect by ANY means. The jello crowns fell apart, the rice krispies were too hard and the whole Excalibur Cake was WAAAAAAAAY too sweet to even eat, but we really enjoyed hanging out together.  We also had coloring pages that I printed offline and we colored together at the coffee table while we watched the movie.  I’ll make sure to put up some more of my family’s FMNs to share some great ideas and some epic failures in later posts.    

    Look into doing your own Family Movie Nights!  Check the internet for different ideas.  The Disney Family website has lots of resources and printables as well.  Coloring pages are all over google and make a nice quick craft to do together.  That night was done, mostly, with things that I had on hand.  When all was said and done, I had spent maybe $4 for the cake glitter and gotten a priceless evening with my family.  It may seem like a lot to do, but really, don’t be discouraged.  Big or small, your kids will appreciate the fun you provide for them and your family will benefit from the time spent together.  

-Lady Imagine