Weekly DDL Post

This week on the Disney Driven Life, I take a look at the soon to come FastPass System for meeting Mickey Mouse! To find out about the new system and where it will be located, check out the article by clicking here!

Student Teaching Shenanigans Restrictions

Due to recent events regarding a teacher in Pennsylvania who said negative things about students and a school district on the internet, restrictions are being set onto teachers and other professionals regarding the expression of their opinions.  It has been advised that we no longer talk about situations in schools, especially regarding students.  Because of this, my Student Teaching Shenanigans posts from here on out will include very little mention of the students that I work with or their quotations.  My posts will mainly focus on the experience I have as a teacher and the lesson I teach and learn.

Frankly, I really do think this stinks.  I am a student teacher, thoroughly enjoying the experiences that I am having and enjoying sharing these experiences with my friends and because of one person, all of us have to be restricted.  My students say some of the cutest things and I enjoy sharing them.  I hope you have enjoyed the segments that I have had so far and I will work to make sure that my future posts are still an enjoyable read.

New Blogging Post at Disney Dispatch

Starting today, I am a weekly blogger for DisneyDispatch.com, a site that has "Daily Disney Headlines and Hullabaloo" for all of us Disney fans! On the site, I will be writing the weekly article "It Came from Disney!" where I will talk about the Disney items I own and what I think of the item.  My first article is about the Walt Disney World Backpacks and can be read by clicking here! If you haven't explored Disney Dispatch yet, I highly recommend it, there are some great articles to be read by many friends in the Disney community!

Weekly DDL Post

This week on the Disney Driven Life, we take a look at the Cast List for the upcoming attraction Star Tours 2! Read the article by clicking here!

Fond Fair Memories: Minnie's House

The next stop on our FAIRwell tour to Mickey's Toontown Fair is Minnie Mouse's House! This fun and interactive house could keep small children and even some big kids at heart occupied for a while!

So pretty in pink!

Just like Mickey's, its a familiar face on the mailbox

Such a nice hearth!

The chair looks comfy, but if I remember correctly, its not that comfy, kinda stiff actually

Old Fashioned Radio

No, the Stroller in this picture is NOT Minnie's!

I just loved Minnie's knick-knacks!

Its Mini Minnie's House!

There's a Mini Mickey's house too!

Ah, the lovely Miss Daisy

One of Minnie's many paintings....and I just love how big their light switches are!

Some more award winning artwork

I just love this one

This was cool, you could actually sit and get a picture taken pretending to run the sewing machine

 You could get your picture with this pottery wheel also

Wow is Minnie Talented or what?

 

The next few pictures are a series of posters that were on the wall in Minnie's house

 

Mickey as a Knight in shining armor

I love this, this was Minnie's message area!

Kinda blurry, but this was a letter from Flora, Fauna and Merriweather that Minnie was replying to

You could listen to Minnie's answering machine messages

Some notes on her bulletin board

More notes and papers

Minnie's official citizenship certificate!

I just loved this "Diet Cookie" trick in the kitchen

You would press a button and the spoons would make some music banging against the pots

Minnie has her cheese stock piled in the fridge. You can even feel the cold air coming out

 

Lots of notes on her fridge

Minnie's Sink

This was the cake Minnie was cooking that you could watch rise and fall when you pushed a button

Bigger view of the oven area

Her mixer and microwave that had popcorn to pop inside of it

Inside the Greenhouse

She had some great seeds to plant

Artsy picture of the seats in the greenhouse courtesy of my little sis

The back gate leading out of Minnie's house

So long Minnie's House! We will miss you!

Student Teaching Shenanigans: Parent Conferences

Yesterday I had school, but for the first time, the kids were not there! It was parent - teacher conference day, a day that I was not entirely sure what to think.  These conferences were not the typical conference that every student has, this was a conference day for those students who were having a tough time and are really struggling.  While I do not have a problem talking with adults or parents, it does get kind of nerve wracking when you do not know how a parent is going to react when you tell them that if their child does not show improvement by the end of the year, they may have to stay back in first grade, which may be the case with a couple of the students. I was very interested to see how Maria handled these situations.

We only had 5 conferences, four of which we needed a translator for because the parents spoke mostly or entirely Spanish.  Seeing the way the teacher, translator and parent worked was very interesting, it flowed a lot smoother than I thought it would.  Some of the parents brought their older children with them to assist in the comprehension because they have been in school and understood more English. Even a couple of our students came in with the parents and we had them read a book while we talked to the parents.

All of the conferences went fine, the parents seemed comfortable and asked questions when they had them. Maria offered ideas and ways that the parents can help the students at home to do better and some of the parents even talked to us about what the home life is like for the students and gave us things to watch out for in the classroom. They did not get upset or angry with the teacher, they just listened, which was very cool. I am glad I was able to see this dynamic of being a teacher, it made me feel more confident for when I have to start this. I really liked the open communication that I saw and I hope that I can make my classroom seem as friendly to my parents and students.

Fond Fair Memories: Mickey's House

Last week, we said goodbye to the seventh magical land in the Magic Kingdom, Mickey's Toontown Fair. When I was down in August, I took as many pictures as I could of the Fair, knowing that it would be the last time I would see it.  I thought this would be a good time to start my photo mini-series of the Fair, to promote the memories of the good times we all had there! Feel free to comment or send me your favorite memories of Mickey's Toontown Fair.

For our first photo series, here are my photos of Mickey's House! Enjoy!

It's all about the details! Mickey is everywhere, even the fence!

I always wanted this mailbox

Mickey's front window

Mickey's Door

A picture of Mickey building his house. This was to the left as you walked in the door, next to his bedroom

This was the gate in front of Mickey's room to keep Pluto out....needless to say, it didn't work so well...

A look inside Mickey's closet...kinda messy, but it's an organized mess

Mickey's Room

Love how all his clothes are so lined up and his mannequin has his ears!

Mickey's Foyer Mirror, keys, and is that mail?

Why yes! That is Mickey's mail on the table!

Wow Mickey gets mail from some popular people!

Part of Mickey's Living room! Here's his Bike!

Mickey's Bike

Mickey's Couch, seems like he rushed off while watching a big game!

His banners are cool!

Those snacks look good!

The rest of Mickey's Living Room. Remember the television? Tell me you haven't tried to lean over and see what was on the screen just to set off the alarm buzzer! I know I have!

I could so take a nap in that chair...

A picture in the living room of Donald's Boat, Miss Daisy

Some ore classic Donald Pictures in Mickey's House. These are between the Living room and Game Room

Some interesting things in Mickey's Game Room

The games in the Game Room....Poor Donald....

The different trophies are so cool

Some pictures on the Game Room Wall

The Paddles are Mickey shaped!

Seeing this sign in front of your kitchen spells DANGER!

Goofy and Donald's Remodeling Plans

The rest of the plans

What a mess....

Can you tell Donald was in here?

The list on the door is awesome!

This has Goofy written all over it

This looks really neat, I will miss this....

Wow, that mixer is such a mess!

What were they thinking with the paint and paper?

Ok, don't feel so bad about the paint and paper when you see these paper issues!

Walking outside of Mickey's Back Door, you see the Judges Tent just past his Garden

The signs in the back yard were so fun to read!

Pluto's House!

Love Mickey's Pants sitting there!

That is one BIG Pumpkin!

Mickey has the coolest tomato patch

More of Mickey's Garden

BIG Tomatoes

The coolest tomato EVER

Mickey's Cactus plants have character

Donald!

Oh the discoveries made in Mickey's Garage

He really keeps everything in here, doesn't he?

I want a Last Aid kit and a giant cartoon mallet!

I wonder who sat there....

Goodbye Mickey's House, we shall miss you!!

Look for more picture memories from Toontown coming soon!