Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey's Monster Musical

by Joyce Kessel

The Director of Return to Never Land, Donovan Cook and Executive Producer of Jake and the Never Land Pirates, Rob LuDuca, brings another fun Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Adventure.  The DVD, released on September 8, 2015, will surely get the little ones excited for Halloween.  The DVD includes an exclusive Mini tote trick-or-treat bag.

Mickey needs help solving a spooktacular mystery!!  Can you help him out?

Put on your favorite Halloween costume and get set for a spooktacular full-length adventure. Visit the creaky castle of kindly “Count Mickula” and help your Clubhouse pals solve a puzzling riddle: Who, or what, is making a curious clanging, banging noise? With the right Monster Mouseketools and help from YOU, this mystery will soon be history! Then, enjoy two more exciting episodes as you search for pirate treasure with Captain Mickey and don your dungarees for delightful fun down on the farm. Packed with singing, dancing, laughter and surprises, Mickey’s Monster Musical is a high-spirited treat that can’t be beat.

Joyce's Thoughts:
Mickey’s Pirate Adventure was my favorite episode and I liked joining Mickey and friends on the beach for a day of adventures.  How amazing would it be to catch some waves with Mickey, even if you wipeout!!!  One of my favorite scenes was the duo with Goofy and his Grandpappy.  Will they be able to tune the island?  You have to watch to find the answer.  

My least favorite episode was the Monster Musical.  I can’t really pinpoint what I didn’t like about the episode, but I am sure that it will be a favorite of many.

Voice Cast:  Bret Iwan as Mickey; Russi Taylor as Minnie Mouse; Bill Farmer as Goofy and Pluto; Tony Anselmo as Donald Duck; and Tress MacNeilleas Daisy Duck.

The DVD has a running time of 115 minutes and includes the following episodes:
Mickey’s Monster Musical 
Mickey’s Pirate Adventure
Mickey’s Farm Fun Fair
Bonus: Minnie’s Bow-Toons: Tricky Treats

Minnie-Rella...

by Joyce Kessel

Minnie-Rella on DVD is a fun-filled Disney Junior Adventure perfect for the entire family.   I loved the music, love and friendship shared between our most-loved Disney Characters.  Put on your dancin’ shoes and read my review, and tune in to Disney Junior or purchase the DVD and share with your favorite Prince and Princess. 

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Don’t Miss The Latest Full-Length Adventure from
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 
MICKEY MOUSE CLUBHOUSE: MINNIE-RELLA

Available To Own on Disney DVD on February 11
Premieres on Disney Channel and Disney Junior on February 14




Synopsis:  Our beloved Mickey, Donald, Daisy and Goofy need to get Minnie a surprise present, but they keep her busy with plenty of chores to do at the Clubhouse.  Minnie is tired from so much work, and falls asleep and dreams that she is MINNIE-RELLA!  Inspired by the fairy tale of Cinderella, the story of Minnie-rella sparkles with music and fun as we recognize our favorite Clubhouse characters in familiar roles.

Poor Minnie-rella needs a lot of help to get ready for Prince Mickey’s Grand Ball!  With a wave of her wand and some “Mouseke-doodle-lee-doo” magic, Minnie-rella’s Fairy Godmother, Clarabelle, transforms an ordinary tomato into a magnificent carriage and Minnie-rella’s raggedy dress into a beautiful gown that is perfect for a princess.  But Minnie-rella’s enchanted dance with Prince Mickey at the ball must end when the spell is broken at midnight.  With our help, Prince Mickey finds the princess who fits into her lost glass slipper – Princess Minnie-rella!

The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Minnie-rella DVD comes packaged with the full-length adventure, a FREE Castle Play Set, 3 additional Mickey Mouse Clubhouse episodes and 10 Minnie’s Bow-Toons Shorts!

Cast:  Bret Iwan (as Mickey Mouse); Russi Taylor (as Minnie Mouse);Bill Farmer (as Goofy and Pluto); Tony Anselmo (as Donald Duck); and Tress MacNeille (as Daisy Duck).

Director:  Donovan Cook (Return to Never Land)
Exec. Producer:  Rob LaDuca (Jake and the Never Land Pirates)
Producer and Story Editor:  Mark Seidenberg (Jake and the Never Land Pirates)

Release Dates: DVD debuts on Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Airs on TV on Friday, February 14, 2014 at 9:00 a.m., ET/PT on Disney Channel and 5:30 p.m., ET/PT on Disney Junior

Packaging:  1-Disc DVD (Each DVD comes with a FREE Castle Play Set, 3 additional episodes and 10 Minnie’s Bow-Toons Shorts)

Bonus Episodes:                    

Pluto’s Tale – In Pluto’s very first fairytale adventure, we help Prince Pluto rescue Princess Bella from the clutches of sneaky Wizard Pete.

Mickey and the Enchanted Egg – Mickey finds an egg which soon hatches into a Baby Dragon. Mickey and his friends have to return the Dragon back to her castle home and convince the powerful Wizard Pete that they didn’t steal the egg in the first place.

Daisy’s Pony Tale – When Professor Von Drake’s new invention, a Fritzer-Spritzer Spray Potion, accidentally gets spritzed on Daisy’s ponytail, it makes her hair grow super long! That’s not goody-good at all. Along with Mickey and Sire Goofs-a-Lot, Daisy travels on her pony to find twelve leaves of the magical plant, Rapunzel, in order to reverse the effects of the Professor’s potion and fix her ponytail.

Minnie Bow-Toons Shorts:   
Piano Movers and Shakers
*A Good Sign
*Locked Out
*Feelin’ Crabby
*Cucko-Loca’s Egg-celent Adventure
*Funny Bunny
*Weather or Not
*Mechanical Mayhem
*Adventures in Piggy Sitting
*Minnie’s Makeover Madness

Ratings:         TV-Y (US)
Feature Run Time:   Approx. 102 minutes
Aspect Ratio:    2.35:1
Audio:               Dolby Digital Surround Sound
Languages:       English
Subtitles:            English, Spanish

Mickey & Donald...Have A Farm!

Mickey & Donald...Have A Farm!

Old Mac Mickey Had A Farm...oh, and his friend Donald owned it with him! Meeska-Mouska-Do! And all their Mickey Mouse Clubhouse© friends help them keep their musically fun farm running smoothly...well, almost! So, get ready to roll up your sleeves, hop on the Clickety-Clack tractor and prepare to lend a helping hand in this barnyard adventure!

Fun On The Farm

Ok, if you have little ones, you're most likely very familiar with the Disney Junior channels Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Of course, if you don't have little one's in your life, odds are you MAY have heard of this show, but never watched it...right? The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is targeted to preschoolers but is appropriate for children of any age. In true Disney fashion, the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse sets our Disney heroes in a series of escapades designed to teach viewers how to solve a specific age-appropriate problem utilizing basic skills, such as identifying shapes and counting through ten. 

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse Mickey & Donald Have A Farm continues this premise, and adds fun activities that are farm/barnyard related, like operating the Clickety-Clack tractor and planting seeds to grow food. Comprised from previous seasons, included on the DVD are five fun and educational episodes:

• Mickey and Donald Have a Farm
• From Season One of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
• Goofy's Petting Zoo
• From Season One of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
• Clarabelle's Clubhouse Mooo-Sical
• From Season Two of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
• Goofy the Homemaker
• From Season Two of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
• Donald Hatches and Egg
• From Season Three of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

Packed with nursery rhymes, sing-a-long songs and how-to instructions, each episode invites the viewers to play along with the Clubhouse friends and learn about teamwork, problem solving and even early math skills (something I wish I'd have had when I was a kid!). 

All in all, even for an older Disney fan like myself, Mickey & Donald Have A Farm is a cute engaging and fun filled trip to the farm. With approximately Two Hours of adventure and learning,  you can let your little ones watch without feeling like they've wasted their time! Oh, and included in the DVD packaging is a hands-on activity that you can join your little ones on: Let's Get Growing Mickey's Planting Kit PLUS Fun Farm Facts - A neat little kit to let you grow your very own Clubhouse Garden! With detailed instructions on how to turn an egg carton into a seed starter, Farm Funnies (cute jokes your little ones can share with their friends and family), a package of seeds to plant and pretty high quality plastic soil stakes for your seeds. Seed selections will vary but in our pack, we received Nevada Lettuce...and when they grow we'll share photos! 

Grow Your Own Salad!

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey & Donald Have A Farm is available on DVD now for an SRP of $19.99, and you can find it just about any place that sells DVD's, or, you can find it on our Amazon Affiliate Store at Tales From The Mouse House Amazon Store . If you're looking for a fun way to teach your little ones some amazing things, this is definitely the DVD series to buy! Ah, if only I were a kid again...I mean chronologically...we all know I'm still a kid at heart! So, while you're waiting for your copy to arrive, check out a preview below! -- Al 

Happiest Blog On Earth...Walter Elias Disney



Walt Disney and a Friend!

Today is December 5th. For a lot of people, an ordinary, average everyday sort of day. For many, it marks the point in the year where it's officially time to freak out about Christmas shopping! And then there are those of us who look at this day differently. We see December 5th as a very auspicious day in the...well, in the Happiness "industry"! See, an inspirational visionary was born on December 5, 1901 - Walt Disney

Now, this isn't going to be a history lesson, or a biographical piece, so I won't delve into WHO Walt was, but I will tell you WHAT he means to me. It's only fitting that I pay tribute to him. After all, I owe a LOT to him really. Over the course of his amazing life, Walt created most of the greatest memories for a great many people, through his animated movies, TV shows and of course, his beloved Parks. I know for me personally, Disneyland has changed my life, for the better of course!

 By now, most of you know my story: I didn't make my first visit to Disneyland until 2007. After that point, well, pretty difficult to imagine life WITHOUT Disneyland. For so many reasons, I owe Walt Disney a debt. By creating his wonderful Disneyland, Walt helped me find that inner child that I had once thought gone. Disneyland also created a huge bond between Joyce and me (not that we were EVER in danger of growing apart, trust me! We're soul mates!!), it gave us a HUGE common thread, something we could both dive head-first into TOGETHER. Up to that point, Joyce's fixation with Disney was a mystery to me. After that point, well, let's just say our house definitely looks like a place where true Disney lovers live! But it's more than just a fanaticism for an icon with us. Much more. Through Disney, and Disneyland, we have met some of the most awesome people - people who we are very proud to call friends, no, not friends...FAMILY.

Walt and the Main Street Station

Without even knowing me, Walt Disney also gave me a new purpose in my life. I truly believe in the Magic Walt Disney created. Magic he dearly loved to spread to others. In fact, both Joyce and I believe in that Magic so deeply that we built our now fairly popular podcast around it. I say popular not out of ego, but out of thanks to those of you who enjoy the Magic we share! We've built our mission statement, not just for the podcast but for every aspect of our "Disney Life" to reflect the sincere love we have for Disney and Disneyland, and the fond desire to spread that Magic to as many people as we can. And through this mission, we've met other Disney minded people, like Mr. Daps, Lisa Robertson, Randy Crane, Jason Gordon...and so many, many more, that we've realized that the word friend just doesn't cut it! They're our family.

So, as the world laments about the quickly fading number of days of shopping left until Christmas, some of us celebrate the birth of a man who, without knowing, improved the lives of so many others, including me! Happy Birthday Uncle Walt...and thank you for the Magic! ~~ Al



Happiest Blog On Earth...A Wonderful Cause

Hey gang, 
As many of you already know, my wonderful daughter Amanda is attending college back east for a career in the medical field. She has a terrific giving spirit and has participated in many awesome causes. 

Well, she recently contact Joyce and me and told us all about this exceptionally heroic cause she is now spear-heading, to help increase the awareness of the global health crisis in the world we live in. So, to help raise some much needed money for this, she and her fellow Med-Students have started a totally awesome venture...Joyce and I had the honor of being her first customers, and we'll be launching a trivia contest soon to share some of these Disney inspired gems with some lucky winners! So, to tell you a bit more about this wonderful cause, here's Amanda:


The Master of Science in Anesthesia class of 2014 out of Cleveland, Ohio has begun a project to raise money to provide pulse oximeters to hospitals in economic hardship, but on a larger scale the mission is to also raise awareness for the shortfalls in global health. The LIFEBOX campaign has become the philanthropy initiative for the ASA and AAAA this year and MSA programs around the country are raising money to donate to the betterment of patient care. Lifebox is an organization that produces portable pulse oximeters and donates them along with training and user guides as well as the World Health Organizations standards for patient care.

Badge Clips Make GREAT Holiday Gifts!

Our program, headed by the philanthropy chair Amanda Kessel, is selling retractable badge clips adorned with the colorful array of drug caps we pop off in the OR. We have spent weeks gathering caps and decorating our badge clips to bring to you a spectrum of creative designs (and yes, we attempted and occasionally succeeded in making some more masculine for the gentlemen out there). The clips will be sold for $5/piece and 100% of the proceeds will be going directly to Lifebox. We will be selling the clips at our respective rotation sites up until March when our philanthropy year ends, at which point our progress will be presented at the AAAA meeting in Florida.

In trying to create a design that would appeal to the masses we thought to ourselves; what symbol could be universal so that everyone would want a piece to carry with them daily. DISNEY OF COURSE. Itʼs not just that Mickey is a symbol of that youthful imagination and magic we know so well, but cʼmon theyʼre adorable and oh so colorful! Besides that, the Walt Disney Company also propagates the message of making lasting and positive changes in communities throughout the world, something that you would be contributing to directly with your purchase!
For more information on Lifebox, you can visit their website at www.lifebox.org. Online donations can be made on the site BUT if you do decide to take this route we only get credit if you include Case Cleveland MSA Program in the comments section of the donation.

Any other questions can be directed to Amanda Kessel by email at alk69@case.edu . Thank you for your support!
“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others”- Gandhi