Disney/Pixar's "Inside Out" Mini Review and Random News from my Week ;)

Today, I took my girls to a movie on opening day for the first time. Mom and Mimi came, too. As you've guessed from the title, Inside Out, the latest animated masterpiece from Disney and Pixar, was released in theaters today. After reading the picture book at Barnes and Noble and reading the review on the Plugged In website, I decided it would be a fun one to watch with the girls.

Sadness was my favorite character. :) (Image found HERE)

Pixar did not disappoint. Inside Out was an incredible movie! I don't want to go into too many details and spoil it for all of you, but I would highly recommend this movie, especially if you have girls and wish to understand the mysterious inner workings of their minds. ;)

Like the Pixar films before it, the movie has plenty of laughs and poignancy. But even more important is the underlying message. In Inside Out, we are reminded that both joy and sadness are important for our development emotionally and have a place together as we experience life and make memories.

For those of you with young or emotionally sensitive children, be aware that there are some pretty emotionally intense scenes in this movie. The whole overall theme is loss, change, and how we cope with it. These topics are dealt with sensitively, but they definitely pack an emotional punch. Mom, Mimi and I were all in tears throughout various parts of the movie. My daughters did fine. ;) On the other hand, there were also several laugh-out-loud funny moments that helped balance out the heavier parts.

I also feel that, while children will get enjoyment out of this movie, adults will come away with a whole lot more on a deeper level. A lot of the overall themes may go over children's heads, especially the very young. But it's one of those movies that everyone in the family can find something to enjoy. It also can lead to some great discussions about emotions, how we communicate, and how we deal with change and loss. Just watch it. You won't regret it. ;)

If you'd like more specifics on content, be sure to check out Plugged In's review HERE.

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In other news, I thought I'd share a few photos from my week. :)

On Monday, I went to Mimi's and helped her with a few of her doll displays. Here's how they turned out:

Here's the kitchen display with her Lalaloopsy shelves overhead (which I hung myself). ;) 

Piper (#25)

Sicily Rose (#22)

Details of the table.

An adorable lemonade set.

The hutch.

The colorful kitchen shelves. :)

A closer look at the Lalaloopsy shelves.

Mimi's international doll display. :)

After working on my mom's doll rooms and my aunt's doll displays, I decided it was time to tackle my own. ;) That was Tuesday's project. 

I haven't arranged or dusted them since before Christmas (at least!). Also, we're in the process of rearranging my daughter's rooms, giving Oldest Gal her own room again. I told her that when we did so, I would let her use my top doll room. I figured now was as good a time as any to empty the room and figure out what I was going to do.  

Here's what they looked like when I started.

I love the way the top room was arranged, but it was so high up that it was almost impossible to see from the floor.

The middle room was a kind of game room/bedroom of sorts.

The bottom room was a bedroom with two beds. 

Here's what they look like now (except there are more things in the storage area underneath). ;) 

The top room was replaced by a display. I find that I actually prefer things this way. I was able to use some of my taller furniture and build things up behind the dolls. It was always really hard to see into that top room. Now it's much more open and visible. Tess (Gotz Little Sisters doll), Ella (Gotz Precious Day Elisabeth doll), Lucy (Gotz 16" doll), and Hailey (rewigged Gotz Precious Day Elisabeth doll) seem to like their new arrangement. ;)

The middle room has become a bedroom again for Emma (#41, on the bed), Hayden (#55, sitting on the floor), and Charlie (renamed GOTY Mia doll). I like its simplified look and all of the fun posters on the walls. :)

The bottom room is now a game room/sitting room for the remaining girls. Here we have Ava (renamed GOTY Jess doll), Maggie (Madame Alexander doll), Anjali (#47), Alice (#25), Rachel (renamed AG Julie) and Jenna (renamed AG Rebecca). I was pleased with the fact that I was able to fit six dolls in the room without making it look too crowded. :) 

On Wednesday, the girls and I took a rather last-minute day trip with my mom for a Toys R Us run. ;)

As is our normal tradition, we had lunch at In-N-Out...

...and dessert at Krispy Kreme. (Sorry you can't see the full sign...Dorothy Doe was NOT cooperating). ;) 

We had our usual fun watching the conveyor belt inside...

...and taking pictures of our toys in the "Doughnuts" words. ;) The doll next to Dorothy Doe is one that Middle Gal made out of pipe cleaners and yarn. 

The gals all had an original glazed donut and were kind enough to share with their friends:

Oldest Gal shared with her Tokidoki Unicorno...

...Middle Gal shared with her homemade doll...

...and Little Gal shared with Jane. 

Dorothy Doe got to share some of my donut, too. ;)  

I forgot to get a picture outside of Toys R Us, but we had a great time there. We also went to the local Target. Everyone found something fun to bring home.

Oldest Gal got a Frozen Fash'ems (she ended up with Kristoff, the one she wanted!).

All of the girls found these fun new toys called "MoonBeams". I'm hoping to get a review up soon. I couldn't find any sort of website on them online, but they're super cute and very reasonably priced. The girls have had loads of fun playing with them.

We also got Shopkins MicroLites from Target. :)

And since the Zelfs were on sale for $4.99 each (for either medium OR super), I decided to bring a couple more home for my collection. ;) 

We found some other goodies too, but I didn't get pictures of everything. :)

The rest of the week was spent at piano lessons for Middle Gal, picking up some dolls to restring for a fellow doll club member, at a playdate with friends this morning, and at the movie theater this afternoon. Whew! It was definitely a full week. ;) 

I think that's about all for now. Next week, I have jury duty, so things may be a bit quiet here on the blog. I hope to get some good writing done while I'm waiting around the courthouse to see if I've been selected, though. ;)

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend! :)