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Everything Else Toddler Life

The Boss Baby

Suz's Treats Boss Baby

Lucy & Zach were so excited to go see The Boss Baby! This film opens in theaters today, but we were able to go a little early so we could tell y’all our thoughts.

Lucy Boss Baby
Can you tell she was excited?!

Zach & Lucy (age 4.75) both really enjoyed it!

Zach Boss Baby
I swear he was excited too

The film centers around imaginative 7 year old Tim Templeton (voiced by Miles Bakshi) & his family, who up until now has been him & his loving parents (Jimmy Kimmel & Lisa Kudrow).

Tim’s mother (voiced by Lisa Kudrow) and father (voiced by Jimmy Kimmel) introduce him to Boss Baby (voiced by Alec Baldwin) in DreamWorks Animation’s THE BOSS BABY. Photo Credit: DreamWorks Animation.

Now enter The Boss Baby! He wears a suit, he talks (voiced hilariously by Alec Baldwin) & Tim thinks something is up & plans to get to the bottom of the story.

(left-right) Tim (voiced by Miles Bakshi) discovers Boss Baby’s (voiced by Alec Baldwin) surprising secret in DreamWorks Animation’s THE BOSS BABY. Photo Credit: DreamWorks Animation.

Cue some crazy adventure & a sweet message about family.

(left-right) Boss Baby (voiced by Alec Baldwin) tries to convince Tim (voiced by Miles Bakshi) that they must cooperate in DreamWorks Animation’s THE BOSS BABY. Photo Credit: DreamWorks Animation.

Check out DreamWorks.com/thebossbaby for some cute videos, games & more about the characters.

Zach loved the adventurous ride the brothers went on & Lucy loved the Mommy & the puppies. There were many jokes in the film that were over L&Z’s heads (but none I felt were inappropriate for their age group). I heard just as much adult laughter from the movie crowd as I did kid laughter.

Zach & Lucy Boss Baby

And this week, they’re new favorite way to say bye to their daycare buddies, or hello to Daddy at dinner, is The Boss Baby handshake!

Zach & Daddy Boss Baby handshake(Also, don’t try to take non blurry photos while Z is trying to eat queso dip. Ha!)

Hope you have a great weekend planned. Anyone going to the movies?! I’d love to hear your thoughts on The Boss Baby too!

We were given tickets to see The Boss Baby but the generosity of 20th Century Fox & DreamWorks Animation did not sway the truthfulness of my post.

Categories
Everything Else

Moana

I had the chance to take Lucy & Zach to see Moana & in short, you need to go too!

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I love strong female characters. I love the example they teach my daughter (& also my son). Moana was determined, friendly, strong, brave & loved her family.  Moana is played by Auli’i Cravalho, a newcomer from Hawaii.

AULI‘I CRAVALHO lends her voice to the title character, MOANA, a teenager who dreams of becoming a master wayfinder. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
AULI‘I CRAVALHO lends her voice to the title character, MOANA, a teenager who dreams of becoming a master wayfinder. ©2016 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

Moana takes place in the Pacific & Pacific islands featuring lovable characters that you would expect from a Disney film.

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Hei Hei kept Lucy & Zach laughing & Pua was adorable (but not in the film all that much).

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Maui you’ll recognize is voiced by Dwayne Johnson who does a super job. He’s sarcastic, full of himself, brave, kinda crazy & super fun. Lucy & Zach both liked him & keep telling my husband about his tattoos.

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When I ask their favorite part, Lucy says she liked the mom, dad & grandma best. The dad Tui is the Island Chief. Moana does not call herself a princess, but instead the Chiefs daughter & next in line to be the chief.

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The island crazy lady, free spirited Grandma Tala, was one of my favorite characters. She helped encourage Moana to go live her dreams.

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Parents of littles be warned, in typical Disney fashion, someone does pass away but it’s beautifully told in the story.
Most of the action takes place while Moana is at sea. Zach ended up in my lap once Moana was in her boat. She & Maui do encounter 3 monsters on their epic adventure. The coconut monsters, the Kakamora, were cute, but they did cause Lucy to climb in my lap too.

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The sparkling hermit crab monster Tamatoa had us dancing in our seat (but Lucy reminds me that he was a bad guy). The music in this film was wonderful. I cannot wait to get the soundtrack.

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& the scariest monster of all, the lava monster, is who Zach now tells everyone is his favorite part of the movie! My 4.5 year olds weren’t overly afraid & left excited not nervous about the monsters, but I wouldn’t take younger ones that would get scared. My duo have actually asked to go watch Moana again already.

Lucy & Zach loved these Moana coloring pages, stars activity & Kakamora craft sheets & water safety tips from Moana. Hope your kiddos enjoy them too!

Hope you & your family have a great Thanksgiving weekend!

Categories
Everything Else

Disney’s MOANA Passes

I received an email last week with a fun local opportunity I wanted to share with my readers. The new Disney film MOANA opens nationwide on November 23rd, but YOU my dear, sweet, fun, local to the Raleigh-Durham area readers have the opportunity to be able to come see the advanced screening of MOANA (& me & Lucy & Zach) THIS Thursday 11/17 at 7p in 3D at Southpoint AMC.

Suz's Treats Moana
Moana

From the creators of Zootopia & Frozen & featuring Dwayne Johnson as the voice of Maui & Auli‘i Cravalho as Moana, this sailing epic adventure film looks fun for all ages. It’s rated PG so I’m thinking Lucy & Zach will love it too.

If you’ll be around this week & want to join us, I was kindly given a good number of first come, first serve passes. Please comment here, email me with the contact me form, Facebook message, text or call me if you’re interested!

Categories
Everything Else

Finding Dory

I don’t think we (& by we, I mean Lucy, Zach & I) have been anticipating anything like we have the sequel to Finding Nemo. Finding Nemo was a college weekend de-stressing, chill movie for me then when we got tired of ‘Let It Go’ing 5 times a weekend, we showed L&Z Finding Nemo very early on. We’d fast forward through the traumatic beginning & show them the sweet, poignant story of love between a father & son. Nemo, Marlin, the sharks & my favorite Dude Crush became staple names in our household & “hold my fin” is often said instead of holding hands for busy parks or walkways.

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As soon as we heard the Finding Dory release date, I had it down for June! We shared with Lucy & Zach the trailers & promotion photos, talked about what the new characters names might be & what they might do in the new film. I found Zach two Nemo & Finding Dory tops at Target & pre-ordered Lucy a Finding Dory KPea dress online. We were ready to go when I got the email that we were invited to see Finding Dory in 3D!
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Can you tell they were excited! They ran from poster to display to the aquarium (“Mommy, Nemo AND Dory are in there!”) & I had to corral them just to get into the theater.
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Speaking of, make sure when you go see Finding Dory, you get there a little early as the new animated short film Piper is absolutely precious.

PIPER – Concept Art by Jason Deamer (Production Designer). ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
PIPER – Concept Art by Jason Deamer (Production Designer). ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

I see Lucy & Zach searching for baby sea gulls on our next beach trip!

Glasses on, snacks in hand & we were ready for Dory! I was prepared for a few scary (for 4 year olds) parts of this film & was happily surprised that L & Z were not nervous a single time! A few jokes (as typical for Disney) went over their heads but Finding Dory is definitely in my opinion safe for the preschool age crowd.

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The new characters are darling & funny & perfect mix in with the return of beloved Finding Nemo characters. I might’ve squealed when my favorite guys were back on the big screen. Ellen DeGenereres comes back as the voice of Dory, with Albert Brooks back as Marlin & Nemo voiced by Hayden Rolence.

I asked Lucy & Zach their favorite part & Lucy all week has said Mommy, there were 3 Dorys while Zach corrects her that were were four then LOTS of Dorys! (Bless their hearts, all Blue Tang fish look alike to them 😛 ) Zach says he loved the octopus & Lucy said she also liked the cuddly otters. I loved how they focused this film on Dory’s story- from baby fish, to her meeting Marlin, Finding Nemo & then took them to current with her, Marlin & Nemo in the reef & Dory beginning to recall more of her past & wanting to find her family.

FINDING DORY – Hank is an octopus—or actually a "septopus": he lost a tentacle—along with his sense of humor—somewhere along the way. When Dory finds herself at the Marine Life Institute, a rehabilitation center and aquarium, Hank reluctantly agrees to help her navigate the massive facility. Directed by Andrew Stanton, "Finding Dory" opens on June 17, 2016. ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
FINDING DORY – Hank is an octopus—or actually a “septopus”: he lost a tentacle—along with his sense of humor—somewhere along the way. When Dory finds herself at the Marine Life Institute, a rehabilitation center and aquarium, Hank reluctantly agrees to help her navigate the massive facility. Directed by Andrew Stanton, “Finding Dory” opens on June 17, 2016. ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

We picked up the Finding Dory busy book at Costco this week & have been reading more about Hank, Destiny & Bailey & more! These guys had me laughing every time they were on screen.

FINDING DORY – Marlin and Nemo get guidance from a pair of lazy sea lions in an effort to catch up with Dory. Featuring Idris Elba as the voice of Fluke and Dominic West as the voice of Rudder, "Finding Dory" opens on June 17, 2016. ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.
FINDING DORY – Marlin and Nemo get guidance from a pair of lazy sea lions in an effort to catch up with Dory. Featuring Idris Elba as the voice of Fluke and Dominic West as the voice of Rudder, “Finding Dory” opens on June 17, 2016. ©2016 Disney•Pixar. All Rights Reserved.

Of course, we had three seats & at one point all of us were cuddling in my lap. It was a late night for them & they did get a little sleepy but perked up for the end of the film. The story of family & what & who is your family was such a sweet message for me as a parent watching Finding Dory. I hope you go with your kids & enjoy it as much as we did!

Insider tip, stay until the end of the credits for a peek at old Finding Nemo friends too!

Since Lucy is all into coloring these days, here’s a few coloring sheets that will help get your little ones (even more) excited over seeing Finding Dory!

While we did get passing to see Finding Dory early on behalf of Disney Pixar, my review is honest & not persuaded by their kindness.