Day 916: Undisclosed Locations

When I end up going to a themed restaurant that even on the smallest level reminds me of Disney, I of course end up blogging about it, and this is another one of those times. However, instead of heading to the Drive In, Oktoberfest, or Beauty and the Beast, we took a different route...one that led us straight into the heart of spydom.

For those that might not know about this popular restaurant, The Safe House is located...well...somewhere in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and is definitely a restaurant you won't forget about soon. In order to get in, once you find it that is, you either need to figure out the password or complete a mission, or, so I've heard, find your own way in via moving wall. Once inside you're seated and you order, but while you wait for your food you're given a list of missions to complete throughout the remainder of the restaurant. The entire place is covered with spy memorbelia and autographs, including a piece of the Berlin Wall, and as you complete missions you tend to find some other hidden secrets as well.

The food was pretty decent. I think it could be better considering how the rest of the restaurant is themed, but I still really enjoyed my salad and we had a good time exploring the restaurant. One of my roommates LOVES spy stuff, so she was thrilled to finally take us there. I'll have to bring the rest of the family down there some time...only I think I'll let them figure out their own way in.

Oh, and to get out you also have to do a bit of solving. But be careful...once you're out there's no way back in!

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on July 6 due to travel).

Day 915: Almost (But Not Really) The Same

I have this tradition that seems to baffle people: Every time I sit and watch fireworks, I play Illuminations on my phone. This Fourth of July was no different, even as I head a couple of hours away to visit my roommates.

Fireworks have always been one of those things where, once you experience all Disney has to offer, there's no going back. Don't get me wrong, fireworks can still be fun and beautiful, but there's something very different about sitting and watching some things explode in the sky and experiencing all that Illuminations: Reflections of Earth has to offer. As Megan pointed out on our drive, my expectations for fireworks are through the roof, and there's no changing that...but it also doesn't mean that I can't acknowledge good fireworks when I see them.

Last year, when we headed up North with the band, the fireworks we ended the trip with were some of the most dissapointing fireworks you've ever seen, and while I didn't go on the tour this year, it sounded like those they watched this year weren't much better. This year, on the other hand, I was in a completely different place, and my fireworks were actually pretty darn good. I was actually very impressed with those that we saw, which went on for a while before leading up to a grand finale that lasted quite some time. The finale also happened to remind me of another Fourth of July fireworks extravaganza I saw a few years back...one much more influenced by Disney:

It took a little while for me to find a decent recording of the exact show I happened to watch back in 2011, but this one did the trick. That's right. I was there for that. It's sort of odd thinking about how this was a video taken from somewhere else around World Showcase and from not far away I was watching as well. 

Here's a recording of this year's fireworks as well via Inside the Magic: 

What I wouldn't give to have seen these fireworks live. As for our fireworks, like I said, they were definitelly wonderful, as you can sort of see even from this one picture (which has more than one firework...meaning it already beats last year). As usual, I listened to Illuminations during the show and always smiled a little extra whenever the fireworks would happen to match up with the music. Just another way to bring a little bit of home back here to Wiconsin. 

Happy Fourth of July everyone! 

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was written on July 6 due to travel).

Day 914: Captain America Day

As the end of this week approached, there was that ever constant nagging in the back of my mind: "What about your Friday YouTube video? What are you going to do? You need to film this and edit it you know." And on and on my mind went. Of course, that nagging voice is right...I do have to, weekly, come up with an idea, write a script, film the video, transfer the files, edit the video and then travel a half hour to upload it because my internet at home is too slow. It's sometimes a bit tiring, but I do love every second of it, right up to the point where the other day I was trying to figure out how I might be able to continue weekly videos once I head back to school in the fall. It'll be difficult, but I'll see what I can do.

However, this week took a bit of thinking. It's obviously the Fourth of July and, at first, I had an entirely different idea. As ideas sometimes do, it fell flat, and I was left on Wednesday with no idea of what I would be uploading for this week's video. And then a tweet from someone I follow gave me a spark and I took it.

Which leads me to my confession...I've never actually seen any of the Captain America movies. Well, I hadn't when I filmed the video. I finally got around to watching the first one last night and loved every second of it. When the video was made, however, Captain America had yet to be watched. Which led to just a few projects...

As you can see in the video, I ended up attempting three Captain America inspired projects, and while the string art definitely took longer than expected, all three where super fun to create! 

Like I said, everything turned out really well and thankfully, despite draining basically every video camera battery I have, I got the video up on time! Remember, there's a new trip vlog on my YouTube channel every Tuesday and Friday Funday Video on Friday at Noon! 

Have a magical day!

Day 913: Operation Dole Whip

Fans of Once Upon A Time aren't strangers to the various operation names that surround the show. So far we've had several, incluing Operation Cobra, the original project in Season One, Operation Save Henry, the mission in Season 3, and, most recently, Operation Mongoose, which took place throughout Season 4. So when Frank and I decided we wanted to go back to Disney and finally figured out a time we'd both be able to go, we dubbed it Operation Dole Whip.

And somehow we managed to make it work.

That's right. In January 2016 we'll be headed back to Walt Disney World for more adventures of every kind, and I can tell you already that there are a lot of things in the works for this trip. From challenges to YouTube videos to games of hide and week, we're already hard at work planning things out.

But that's not what we're most excited for. Operation Dole whip is all about taking things at a relaxing pace and enjoying all that Disney has to offer. So instead of rushing around right away, we've decided that our first day won't be a park day at all, but rather a day to enjoy Old Key West and the other resorts, resting up for the next seven days of adventure time.

Which is where Everyday Disney comes in. We're planning, as I said, several challenges, but over the next few months here on Everyday Disney and on my Instagram I'll be looking for input from all of my followers on what food we should eat, things we should do and possible challenges we should take, so keep your eyes out and get ready for more of those Frank Flashses you can find in the vlogs from this past January!

Have a magical day!

Day 912: Lucky 15: Part 1

This is one of those posts that has two parts a half year apart from one another. That's right, it's time for my bi-annual favorite post round up! When you blog once for every day of the year, you definitely have an opportunity to look back at some of the best moments in your life, and that's one of the main reasons I do this twice a year. Not only do I have an automatic blog post topic for every July 1, but I also get to sit and recall the incredible adventures I've had here on Everyday Disney!

If you want to go back and read the posts that go along with this one, you can find them at the links right below!

2013: Part 1     2014: Part 1

2013: Part 2     2014: Part 2

Saturday, January 17, 2015: Day 747: A Few More Favorites

January held a lot of great moments for me: I was on Buzzfeed, went to Disney World, started the Everyday Disney Challenge, and tons of other stuff, but ultimately I think this post has to be my favorite. My Disney Trip this past January with my friends and family was one of the greatest I've ever had, so of course I just had to pick the post with some of my favorite pictures from that trip. My all time favorite, however, is the one you see above, which was taken at Epcot right where we stood in June to watch Illuminations. It's not my favorite place to watch the show, but it definitely holds a special place in my heart now.

Friday, February 13, 2015: Day 774: Alton Brown

You don't always get to meet people on the list of people you want to meet, and that's why meeting Alton Brown just has to be on my list for the first half of the year! His show was hilarious and I loved every second of it! Now, hopefully by the time I meet Colin I'll have met enough other people to control the shaking of my face. 

Friday, March 6, 2015: Day 795: The Love Triangle Theory: Volume 2

It's been a while since the first volume of the Love Triangle Theory, which states that in any love triangle situation, the two halves that meet last will end up together. Back in 2013 my examples included Han & Leia and Katniss & Peeta, but it seems to me that Once Upon A Time has it's own set of Love Triangles just waiting to support this theory. Did I have to wait for CaptainSwan to officially become a couple that seemed endgame to post the second volume? Yes. Was it worth the wait? You bet it was. 

Tuesday, April 14, 2015: Day 834: Modifications

April actually held a lot of great posts as well, but this one definitely stands out as a favorite. As one of the more popular posts here on Everyday Disney as well as on the official Tumblr, it's hard to go against my own set of DisneyBound Essentials, inspired by the post from the official DisneyBound Tumblr. I DisneyBound quite frequently these days, so putting together a quick list of my own essential pieces was a ton of fun!

Thursday, May 14, 2015: Day 864: Hakuna Matata

The end of every semester of school brings a lot of different emotions, and it just so happens that we now have a whole set of characters ready to help explain those feelings! In one of a spur of the moment blog posts, I go through the five emotions of Disney/Pixar's latest feature film, Inside Out, and have them help explain just how college students like myself might be feeling as another year comes to a close.

Thursday, June 11, 2015: Day 892: Missing Frank and Shovell

It should come to no surprise that as I headed back to Walt Disney World without my friends, things certainly weren't the same. I spent a good potion of my time missing my friends, but even from states away, they managed to light up my life...with a little help from Cardboard Colin of course. I do find it entertaining that Cardboard Colin is quickly becoming my thing on Twitter. I suppose I do take a lot of selfies with a cardboard Captain Hook though...

Monday, April 20, 2015: Day 840: Worth the Wait

And for my bonus post this time I just have to go back to the day I got a random envelope in the mail and it turned out to be a signed autograph from Josh Dallas. Turns out that if you wait over a year, sometimes that wait is worth it. Talk about a Charm Attack!

There you have it! The first half of 2015 in a nutshell. Of course, if you're just joining us here at Everyday Disney, I do recommend going back through some of these posts, which are often some of my favorites and most interesting. Basically all of me wrapped up into a few posts instead of 912. I'll be back at the end of the year with a post celebrating the second half of 2015, but until then...

Have a magical day!

Day 911: Halfway Through

It's the end of another month, which means more Everyday Disney Challenge Photos! This month was originally inspired completely by resorts, but I cut it down a bit to make it easier for everyone! There's definitely still hints of the resorts throughout the month though, and I do have to note that there was an editing error, so we made Day 25 a free day as well! 

As always, everyone is welcome to join in this next month as I continue forward in my year of Disney pictures. Special thanks to all of my Instagram follwers who continuously support this project with favorites and comments! I definitely keeps me going and means the world to me! 

Have a magical day!