If you haven’t seen Olaf’s Frozen Adventure played in front of the Disney•PIXAR animation COCO, then you are lucky again!
Disney is celebrating the release of the digital version of the PIXAR shorts that would come with some amazing bonuses. You will get to enjoy six classic Disney shorts alongside with Olaf’s Frozen Adventure!
The premise of the Olaf’s Frozen Adventure is that Olaf is eager to find his family’s tradition to be proud of. For that, he has to be creative and he goes from door to door and collects ideas and objects that represent different families’ traditions. At the end, what comes out of this story is a good lesson to learn – look around you first!
Olaf’s Frozen Adventure on Digital to Add to Your Home Disney Collection
6 Classic Disney Holiday Shorts
THE HOCKEY CHAMP – Donald Duck shows his nephews the moves that won him his hockey trophy, but the boys have a few moves of their own.
WINTER – Silly Symphony – In this musical short – the last of the ‘Silly Symphony’ series – see wintertime from the point of view of our favorite woodland creatures.
THE ART OF SKIING – The first cartoon to use the now-famous Goofy holler, this short features Goofy learning how to ski at the Sugar Bowl Ski Resort.
PLUTO’S CHRISTMAS TREE – While picking out their Christmas tree, Mickey and Pluto chop down the perfect one, unaware that they’re bringing home Chip and Dale along for the ride.
ONCE UPON A WINTERTIME – While courting Jenny, Joe tries to show off on the ice, but events soon turn to a timely rescue in this musical December Valentine.
POLAR TRAPPERS – The first cartoon to feature Donald and Goofy without Mickey; The duo are animal trappers in the South Pole with very different (and hilariously unsuccessful) approaches.
Fun Facts About Traditions!
Fruitcake
Did you know that a fruitcake you are used to eat on holidays dates back to the Roman Empire? The cake was prepared with nuts, barley mash, pomegranate seeds, raisins and honeyed wine used to sustain crusaders and hunters over long periods away from home.
The modern fruitcake can be traced to Middle Ages as dried fruits became more available. But the 18th Century is known for its outlaw of the fruitcake as being sinfully rich. Fruitcake can age 25 years and still be eaten! Well, as long as it contains the proper preservatives and is stored in an airtight container.
Fruitcake is the American tradition that comes from the British
Gingerbread
From Greece, the Gingerbread tradition moved to China and the Middle East during the 11th century Crusades. Catholic monks used gingerbread dough to create angels and saints. But the Middle Ages and Europeans changed that tradition by developing different techniques and shapes of the gingerbread creations.
When the gingerbread tradition found its way to Great Britain, it got yet another layer – being decorated! Queen Elizabeth I is credited with decorating the first gingerbread men.
But Germany is the place where gingerbread houses got originated. And the publishing of Hansel and Gretel by the Grimm Brothers added the decorating of the gingerbread houses. Later, the German settlers brought this tradition into America, where it continues to thrive.
The first known recipe of Gingerbread comes from Greece in 2400 BC
Candy Canes
The story goes that a choirmaster in 1670 was worried about children sitting quietly through the long service, so he gave them something to eat to keep them quiet. He made candy into a “J” shape like a shepherd’s crook. I t was sometime around 1900 that the red stripes were added and flavored with peppermint.
There’s no denying the fact that when we see a candy cane – we know a Christmas season is here!
A Candy Cane is a German Invention!
Yule Bells
Yes, the ringing of a bell is as Pagan as it can be! The ritual was about to drive bad and evil spirits away by ringing the bells and lighting candles.
In the Christian faith, bells have been associated with Christmas for centuries and have been associated and used for notifying the community of the start for religious services.
The whole bell tradition comes from an ancient Pagan ritual
Dreidels
Dreidel literally means “little spinner” that features four Hebrew letters nun, gimmel, hey and shin which stand for the Hebrew phrase “A great miracle happened there.”
Tradition holds that a 19th Century rabbi maintained that Jews played with dreidels in order to fool the Greeks if they were caught studying Torah, which had been outlawed.
Dreidel has become a competitive sport since 2007. Major League Dreidel hosts annual tournaments in New York.
Dreidel is a Jewish tradition
Lefse
Pronounced “lefse,” it is a traditional baking from Norway. Using potato flour, a soft flatbread is made to be used all by itself or with other foods.
The stories go as far as Vikings, when the Norse god Odin first had it served to the souls of the slain warriors who occupy Valhalla as a way to fortify the for their final battle.
Today, lefse is a treat much reserved for the Holidays. Enjoy it any way you love to eat: with dips, cheese, sweet filling, and more!
LEFSE is a traditional soft flatbread based on a potato flour
