Watching Disney movies as an adult is a whole new experience. Movies that I loved watching as a child or as a teenager feel different not. They hit differently. There are even some songs in the most recent Dinsey movies that I know I would have not felt the same feels if I would have seen them when I was a younger child. Here are some of the best Disney movies that really impact me as a mother.
Peter Pan: Your Mother and Mine
In one of the most iconic Disney movies of all time, Peter Pan, Wendy, and her two brothers6 leave their home in London to follow a carefree orphan boy named Peter Pan. Peter lives in a whole other world called Neverland where nobody grows up. They get to stay the same age. The kids find the idea of never growing up to be remarkable because Wendy is getting older and her father told her that she needs to grow up. The children have the best time, in the beginning, but then they realize that they really do need a mother and they really do want to go home. Wendy starts singing to her brothers, and the rest of the lost boys, about her mother back home. I hear the lyrics now and they mean so much more to me now that I am a mother of four children.
What makes mothers all that they are?
Might as well ask 'What makes a star?'
Ask your heart to tell you her worth
Your heart will say 'Heaven on earth'
Another word for divine
Your mother and mine
Dumbo: Baby Be Mine
Baby Be Mine from Dumbo is probably the most famous mother-baby song on Disney. One of the saddest and most heart-wrenching moments in Disney history was when Dumbo and his mother were separated. She was in her crate while he was being taken away to perform in the circus. He ran up to see his mother and she started hugging him with his trunk. She began singing the song. As I watch this video I am tearing up. The love that a mother has for her babies cannot be even described in words. I can’t imagine being separated from my children.
Baby mine, don't you cry
Baby mine, dry your eyes
Rest your head close to my heart
Never to part
Baby of mine
Little one, when you play
Don't you mind what they say
Let those eyes sparkle and shine
Never a tear
Baby of mine
From your head to your toes (Baby mine)
You're so sweet, goodness knows (Baby mine)
You are so precious to me
Cute as can be
Baby of mine
Coco: Remember Me
I am not talking about the pop version of the song, but the one that the father sings to Coco when she was a little girl. The song was written from a father to his daughter. I can feel this song so deeply as a mother. I am a very lucky woman who gets to be with my children. I stay at home with them and there are very few times in which I am away. I think about all of the fathers and the mothers who are single parents, or who are in the military who have to say goodbye to their kids for days, weeks, or months on end. I feel for those parents. It is so hard to leave your children behind and all you can think about is your children forgetting who you are. One of the sweetest moments between a father and a daughter that Disney has ever done.
Remember me
Though I have to say goodbye
Remember me
Don't let it make you cry
Forever if I'm far away
I hold you in my heart
I sing a secret song to you
Each night we are apart
Remember me
Though I have to travel far
Remember me
Each time you hear a sad guitar
Know that I'm with you
The only way that I can be
Until you're in my arms again
Remember me
Toy Story: When She Loved Me
If this doesn’t make you feel some kind of way then I am not sure you have a heart. This song is from Toy Story 2 when we learn for the first time why Jessie is so bitter toward Andy having a kid. We figure out why Jessie is so broken. She shares how she used to have a kid named Emily and they were the best of friends. They did everything together. She shared that she felt like together they could accomplish anything that the world has to throw at them. Well, Jessie watched her little Emily grow up. Emily started becoming older and she turned into a teenager. Emily started being more interested in boys, makeup, friends, and clothing. Then Emily got rid of Jessie because she didn’t need Jessie anymore.
As I watched this heartbreaking scene from the movie I can’t help but to think about my children. I love that my children are growing up and learning. However, I hate that my children are growing up. I have three boys and one girl. I know that my days are limited. I know that it is only a matter of time that dad becomes their favorite. I know that one day they are going to want to spend time with their friends instead of me.
When somebody loved me, everything was beautiful
Every hour we spent together, lives within my heart
And when she was sad, I was there to dry her tears
And when she was happy, so was I, when she loved me
Through the summer and the fall, we had each other, that was all
Just she and I together, like it was meant to be
And when she was lonely, I was there to comfort her
And I knew that she loved me
Tarzan: You’ll Be in My Heart
Last, but certainly not least, one of the best songs that you can sing to your little child. Disney really knows how to pull at your heartstrings from the very beginning. Without any words that are actually spoken in the movie, we are already crying. A man and a woman are on a boat and they are trying to sail across the sea. They hit a storm and end of being shipwrecked. They begin creating a home in the tree. They have a cute little baby boy. A horrible tiger comes in and kills the mom and dad. A gorilla hears crying in a treehouse and she goes in to see what is going on and she sees a little baby. That is when the tiger comes out and tries to kill her. She escapes with the baby. She decides to raise the little boy as her own because her own baby was killed by the same tiger. Can we talk about the most traumatic start of a movie? The mother sings the song to her adopted son, Tarzan.
Come stop your crying It will be alright Just take my hand Hold it tightI will protect you From all around you I will be here Don't you cryFor one so small You seem so strong My arms will hold you Keep you safe and warm This bond between us Can't be broken I will be here Don't you cry'Cause you'll be in my heart Yes, you'll be in my heart From this day on Now and forever more
Disney has always done such a great time being able to relate to its viewers. Children and adults can both feel connected to their films. As a mother, I have noticed that different parts of movies touch me more now. What are your favorite Disney songs now that you are a parent?
Sources: Lyric Find, AZ Lyrics, IMDB, Youtube,