Today is the official first day of Autumn! The trees are changing color, there is a chill to the air, and pumpkin spice is taking over everything. If you are wanting to celebrate the start of the season, we’ve got some great Disney ways to do just that!
Mickey & Friends Autumn Activity Book
Spend time with Mickey and his friends as they celebrate autumn leaves, football, and the changing seasons.
What You’ll Need
- Regular paper or cardstock
- Scissors
- Wrinkle-free glue
- Stapler
- Colored pencils, crayons or markers
- Download PDF
How To Play
- Print all pages of the Mickey and Friends Autumn Activity Book and cut them out.
- Place the cover, illustration side down, on a flat working surface. Spread wrinkle-free glue over the entire back of the cover. Now, place pages 1 and 6 (with the illustration side up) directly on top of the glue so that the edges line up. Smooth out any wrinkles.
- Place pages 2 and 5 (with illustration side down) and cover the back with glue. Place pages 3 and 4 (with illustration side up) directly on top of the glued surface, lining up the edges and smoothing out the wrinkles.
- After the glue has dried, fold all pages in half. Place pages 3 and 4 inside 1 and 6 to complete your book. Staple the spine of the book to hold it all together.
Mickey Paper Bag Scarecrow
This playful tabletop Mickey scarecrow may be ear-ry, but don’t count on it to keep the birds at bay. In fact, you’re likely to find young Mickey fans quickly flocking around it.
What You’ll Need
- Download PDF
- Scissors
- Craft paper (black, white, red, pink, orange, and yellow)
- Brown paper lunch bag
- Glue stick
- Glue dots
- Black permanent marker
- Pencil
- Brown colored pencil
- Rafia
How To Make It
- Print the template. Use the Mickey stencil piece as a pattern for first cutting out a rectangle from black paper. Then, with the template piece atop the black cutout, fold the two layers in half vertically, as shown, and cut along the face outline to create a Mickey stencil.
- Glue the stencil to the lower face of the brown paper lunch bag, as shown.
- Use the remaining template pieces as patterns for cutting the shapes from the specified colors of paper. Glue the tongue atop the mouth, and use the black marker to color pupils on the eye pieces (as shown on the template).
- Glue the eyes, nose, and mouth to the bag, positioning them on the face as shown. Pencil grin lines on both sides of the mouth and a curved line immediately below the eyes, as shown. Trace over the pencil lines with black marker.
- Fold down the top of the bag (just above the stencil) and use glue dots to attach the ears to the upper corners of the head, as shown. Next, draw a dotted line down the center of Mickey’s face to simulate scarecrow stitching.
- Glue the hatband to one of the hat pieces. Pencil a couple crosshatching patches on the hat to simulate the texture of a straw hat. You can also add dimension by using a colored pencil to shade the hat along the outer edge and just above and below the hatband.
- Fold the mini colored leaves in half to create a center crease that will make them look more dimensional. Then stick the leaves to the hatband.
- Snip raffia into a bunch of 3- or 4-inch lengths. Divide the lengths into small groups, knotting the strands together in the center. Then use glue dots to stick them to the back side of the brim, as shown.
- Use a couple of glue dots to stick the second hat piece to the back of the first one just along the top edge and at one end of the brim. Leave the opposite end of the brim and both sides (between the hat top and brim ends) open for Mickey’s ears to fit through.
- Fit the hat over the bag top, as shown, and then glue the open end of the brim together to hold the hat in place. Gently pull open the lower portion of the bag so the bottom is flat, and your Mickey scarecrow decoration is ready to display on a tabletop or windowsill.
Mickey’s Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
This fall, whip up a snack that will have Mickey fans whooping it up — frosting-filled pumpkin whoopie pies shaped just like the Mouse.
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1 cup cooked pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Cream cheese frosting (homemade or store-bought)
Directions
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and salt.
- In a second mixing bowl, beat the butter and brown sugar together until creamy. Beat in the egg, pumpkin puree, and vanilla extract.
- Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Then spoon the batter into the pastry bag.
- For the Mickey faces, pipe 2.5-inch blobs of batter on a parchment paper lined baking sheet, spacing them evenly apart. Remember, you need two for each whoopie pie. Use a clean fingertip to gently flatten the blobs into uniform circles, as shown. Tip: dipping your fingertip in water periodically will keep the batter from sticking to it.
- Pipe small ear blobs at the top of each batter face, keeping them as close in size as possible. Again, use a wet fingertip to flatten them, as shown.
- Bake the Mickey pumpkin cakes until they spring back when you press down on the center (about 8 to 10 minutes). Let them cool on the baking sheet slightly before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Spoon cream cheese frosting into a pastry bag.
- Pair up the baked pumpkin cakes, matching the shapes and sizes as best you can. Working with one pair at a time, turn one of the cakes face down and pipe moderate mounds of frosting on the face and ears. Top the frosted cake with its match and gently press down to spread the filling and hold the whoopie pie together. Store leftover whoopie pies in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
The Odd Life of Timothy Green Leaf Craft
Create your very own leaf frame using supplies you probably already have at home!
What You’ll Need
- Download PDF
- Two or four 12-inch sticks
- Tow or four 6-inch sticks
- Silk leaves (any color you choose)
- Brown thread and needle
- Brown twine or yarn
- Scissors
- Glue (optional)
How To Make It
- Start by arranging your sticks into a rectangle. In the diagram, we used two sticks on each side of the rectangle, but only one stick is required.
- Tie the ends of the sticks together with brown thread or yarn. You can also use glue to secure your sticks.
- Place the stick frame on a work surface. Glue the leaves together so they overlap in several areas and fill the frame window. Be careful not to glue the leaves to the work surface.
- Using a needle and brown thread, attach each corner of the glued leaves to the stick frame. Use yarn or string to hang your leaf frame outside or in a sunny window.
Rapunzel’s Squash & Hazelnut Soup
When mother Gothel wants to give Rapunzel a treat, she makes her favorite meal — Hazelnut soup. This wholesome squash soup, topped with roasted hazelnuts, is sure to be a favorite in your home.
Ingredients
- 2 lb butternut squash, seeded and cut into 6 sections
- 1 lb parsnips, peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 green apple, peeled, cored, and quartered
- 1 medium brown onion, thinly sliced
- 4 cups of chicken stock, divided
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 3-4 sprigs fresh thyme
- Salt and white pepper to taste
- 1 cup raw hazelnuts (for topping)
Directions
- For Soup: Preheat oven to 400° F Line a baking dish with parchment paper and drizzle 1 tablespoon of olive oil on top.
- Arrange butternut squash in the baking dish, skin side up. Scatter chopped parsnip and apple quarters around the squash. Top with a few sprigs of fresh thyme. Pour a quarter cup of water into the baking dish.
- Bake uncovered for 45-50 minutes, or until a knife slides easily through the skin of the squash.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven and throw away the sprigs of thyme. Set aside to cool.
- Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in a pan over medium low heat. Add thinly sliced onion and half a teaspoon of salt to the pan and sauté slowly about 10 minutes, or until the onions are soft and translucent, but not browned. Turn off the heat.
- When squash is cool enough to handle, use a paring knife to peel the skin from the butternut squash, discarding the skins. Place the peeled squash into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse into a smooth purée, about 20 seconds. Pour purée into a large stockpot or Dutch oven.
- Place roasted parsnips, apple and sautéed onion into the bowl of the food processor. Add 1 cup of the chicken stock. Purée 20-30 seconds, or until smooth. If the purée is too dry, thin it using an additional half cup of chicken stock. Note: Do not fill a food processor more than half full with hot liquids. Doing so could result in the top or bottom of the food processor bowl blowing off due to pressure.
- Add puréed parsnip and onion mixture to the squash in the stockpot. Add the remaining chicken stock to the pot and raise the heat to medium high. Bring soup to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer.
- While soup is simmering add a half teaspoon of ground cumin, as well as salt and white pepper to taste. Before serving, stir in a half cup of heavy cream
- To Roast Hazelnuts: Preheat oven to 275° F Place 1 cup of raw Hazelnuts on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 25 – 30 minutes, or until the hazelnut skins burst.
- Remove from oven and let cool. When cool enough to handle, roll hazelnuts between paper towels to remove skins. Place skinless hazelnuts into a small plastic bag and crush using a rolling pin.
- Serve soup in bowls or insulated cups and top with the crushed roasted hazelnuts.
How will you be celebrating Autumn? If you’d like to celebrate the season at Disney World, contact me today! I can help you book a memorable vacation at no extra cost to you.
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Sara is a travel agent with Destinations to Travel, a Disney Earmarked agency. She lives in Alaska with her husband and 3 kids. Due to her extreme dislike of winter, she travels often to warmer destinations during the colder months. She visits the Disney parks and resorts frequently with her family and loves helping other families plan magical vacations. Contact her here for help with your vacation!
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