Today marks the 1st official week since Dolphin Tale 2 came out in theaters.  Did you know it is already ranked the #1 Family Movie in AMERICA?!?!?!  It has only been out a WEEK!!!!  This is just way cool 🙂  Have you seen it yet?!  Is it on your radar to see it?!?!  Oh I am just so curious to gather your thoughts on what you thought about it.  Did you leave the theater with bloodshot eyes like I did or have your shirt soaked because you didn’t have tissues with you….

 But first… let me take a selfie 🙂

I am actually still excited about my Press Junket weekend that I had.  I had the honor of seeing the movie weeks before it hit theaters.  I just think this movie was meant to happen.  In life, things just don’t happen.  The universe has a way of creating moments that you really can’t explain, or question, but know that they always have a way of working out in the end.  Dolphin Tale 2 wasn’t planned, it was born…

CEO, David Yates shared “Hope’s” arrival:  Dolphin Tale was about a 4-year project.  It took between 2 and a half years to write and film.  Just so happens that the last day of filming was on Saturday, December 11, 2010.   As the filmmakers,  cast, crew and CMA staff were celebrating the wrap of Dolphin Tale at Island Way Grill, CMA received a call around 5:10pm stating that they have a baby dolphin that needs to be rescued on the East Coast of FL.  11:15PM, that night, the rescue van arrives at CMA with the baby dolphin inside.  Fearing that she wouldn’t make it or not.  She was in bad condition, the rescue team grabbed her and put her in the water.  The casting crew thought that they were still filming a night scene?  The last Dolphin they took in was Winter, which was 5 years before. 

So what are the similarities between WINTER & HOPE?

1 –  Both are females

2 – Both were the same age 2 or 3 months when they arrived

3 – Same species, bottlenose dolphins

4 – Both found in same part of FL, Cape Canaveral

5 – Same rescue team that found winter, found HOPE

  It’s simply amazing to see what happens when FATE occurs in life…You just sit back and watch a BEAUTIFUL friendship form!  #WinterHasHope will last a LIFETIME.

So you seeee, it’s pretty crazy how life can play out sometimes, huh?  This movie was pretty incredible.  I am NOT going to give any spoilers away, but I hope you make it through the END… without shedding ONE tear 🙂

OOOOOOOOOOOOOH YEAHHHHHHHH I forgot to mention that this happened….

  I could hardly contain myself as I got to be part of the press junkets for the weekend and interview some awesome casts!

Do you recognize anyone?!?!?!  Anyone at all?!?! 🙂

Standing left of me is Nathan Gamble, who plays Sawyer Nelson

Standing right of me is…When Harry Met Noordinaryliz 🙂 Harry Connick, Jr, who plays Dr. Clay Haskett

Standing right of me is Cozi Zuehlsdorff, who plays Hazel

When interviewing everyone, it was such ease!  Nathan and Cozi entered the room first and was hilarious from the start.  Harry entered shortly with his wit and he stated, “who are all these pretty girls when I was in high school?”  I could have fallen out of my chair right then… but I didn’t.  We only had 15 minutes or so with them, so the casual conversation began.  The Tampa Bay Bloggers and I were asking away…

TBB: How was it revisiting your roles the dolphins?

Harry: “Man, it was amazing.  You know, there is a little bit of a learning curve I think that goes into any new project.  It’s like going to any new school or summer camp or new film.  You have to get to know people.  As great as these people are, it didn’t take long to get to know them in the first film, but we became so close throughout filming the first movie, that the second one  was something  like a family reunion, we just jumped right in and knew who the characters were.  Although, the context was different, we were able to jump right in, which is a great luxury and doesn’t happen very much.”

Nathan: “Shooting with Winter, ah is so amazing to say that you can work with the most amazing famous dolphin is special.”

Cozi: “Hope is so fun.  She is such an adrenaline junky.  You just have so much fun being with her. They both have distinct personalities. It’s great to get to know them.”

TBB: How has Winter changed your lives?

Harry: “We all have different perspectives, but I think over the course of your life we all are constantly dealt with a bad hand, whether it’s a death of a loved one, or maybe it’s a career setback, relationship problems, you know, there is something to be said for acceptance and being able to process adversity gracefully.  Yeah, Winter is a dolphin and obviously doesn’t process things the same way as we do, but when you see how everyday Winter just does about her life seemingly um happy, it just makes you look at things slightly in a different way I think.  In that way, it has been pretty profound for me.”

Nathan: “For me, one being before I did the Dolphin Tale movies, whenever I saw someone in a wheelchair or with a physical handicap, I would think of them differently, I would be like, Oh my ghosh, that person looks differently then I do.  When really they are just humans and have personalities like I do. They are just more braver than us.

Cozi:  Yea, Winter has provided us with a lot more perspective  than usually teenagers get to have.  When we talk to kids, we try to encourage them that the only difference  between someone with a harder life challenge than you is that they are braver than you, than any of us hope to be.

TBB:  Harry:  You have done it all!  Singer, Broadway, TV, Movies.  What has been your favorite and what do you want to go back to?

Harry: “Well I like the variety of it.  Like I love being on broadway, I’d like to do that again, but you know, after doing six months of 8 shows a week, it’s very intense and I have a short attention span.  I like to mix things up.  So I think it’s the variety itself that I like.  This I can say, was the best movie making experience that I had, two of the best movie experiences that I had.  So I just like to mix it up.  Hopefully, If I am lucky enough, I’ll be able to do more of everything.”

TBB:  What was your favorite spot in the Tampa Bay Area?

Cozi & Nathan: “Frenchys & Clear Sky“

Harry: Casa Tina Mexican Restaurant, awesome place.  Island Way Grill too.

Such a great experience meeting the cast!  I hope you do check out Dolphin Tale 2 sooner rather than later… EVEN if it means your reading my post while your in line waiting to get your movie ticket…..

I received complimentary admission to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium as a Dolphin Tale 2 Ambassador. The review is written by me on behalf of Warner Bros & Clearwater Marine Aquarium. The opinions expressed above are all mine.

The post When Harry met NOORDINARYLIZ…TRUE STORY :) first appeared on #NoOrdinaryLiz.

Have you ever had a time in your life where you always second guess yourself at something? Maybe you see an opportunity come up at work and you think,  man, I have the skills for this and I know I can do it, but you psych yourself out to where you don’t apply to the position, or you’re a really good singer and your afraid to audition because you doubt yourself and you think you won’t make it far.  I bring this up because in life if we keep second guessing ourselves at things, we will miss out on some pretty awesome adventures.  I’m glad I didn’t miss out one this opportunity that I’m about to tell you!  Over this past weekend I got to do something that I never thought I would EVER, I mean EVER get to do, and that was spend it with Warner Bros and the cast of Dolphin Tale 2.  I mean seriously, who gets to do that?!?!  ME!!! The adventures from this weekend was so incredible and truly a once in a lifetime experience.  Over the course of the next several weeks, you will be seeing a series of blog posts about my AMAZING, INSPIRING, SWOOOOOOOing weekend!  In today’s post, I want to introduce you to Clearwater Marine Aquarium (CMA),  Home of Winter, the Dolphin and star of Dolphin Tale  and the upcoming film, Dolphin Tale 2.

Everywhere I travelled, I was running into DOLPHIN Statues…

 My sister and I posing in front of this artistic dolphin…

 I spy…

To start my weekend out right, we got to take a tour of CMA, meet the CEO, David Yates AND meet Winter & Hope.  WHEWWWW… Are you still with me?  That is enough right there to keep you smiling for days.  I know I am.   CEO, David Yates of CMA began to share the story of the aquarium.  It has pretty cool story in itself.  Did you know that it used to be a water treatment plant and has been open since 1972?   Pretty awesome to see how it has transformed today.  When I was walking around it, I could get a sense of smell that old timey history.  Do any of you know what I’m talking about?!?

 Welcome to CMA…

 CEO, David Yates explaining to us about CMA and how Dolphin Tale 2 happened…

Anyways, CMA’s dedication each day is to RESCUE, REHAB, RELEASE…INSPIRE.  WOW!  Now that is a pretty powerful statement.  Every animal that comes through the doors of the aquarium have either been injured or suffering from an illness and cannot survive on their own in the wilderness.  That is where CMA steps in and gives them HOPE!

 CMA’s mission statement…

On December 2005, stranded in Mosquito Lagoon, near Cape Canaveral, Florida, CMA received a call that would forever change their lives.   A bottlenose dolphin that was about 3 months old has washed upon the area.  She was tangled up in a crap trap line that was cutting off circulation to her tail flukes.  After CMA arrived and removed the line, they transported her to new home and despite every effort to expedite the healing process, her tail deteriorated and could not be saved.

 I introduce to you…WINTER 🙂 (photo credit of CMA)

Can you guess how Winter got her name?!?!

So what happened next?

It’s pretty amazing what a brilliant mind and team can do!  People who show perseverance can do anything.  AND THEY DID!  Hanger Prosthetics and Orthotics, Inc., worked with Dr. Mike Walsh, CMA’s marine mammal veterinarian and created a prosthetic tail with a complete fluke and joint onto a dolphin which had never been done before. UNBELIEVABLE!  This was the first time EVER to be done.  Can you see now, why this is just so inspiring? So Winter now gets a new one every 3-6 months.  Today, Winter has a sock called “Winter’s Gel” that helps with his prosthetics.  Because of Winter and the teams creation, this same concept is being used for our VETERANS!

 Winter’s new and improved fluke…

 Winter’s Gel is being stretched out…can you see it? Fact…It can actually fit over a human…

Are you INSPIRED yet?  Don’t you just fall in LOVE with Winter?  It really gives you a glimpse of HOPE.  Seeing how this Dolphin who wasn’t going to push through, made it against all odds and now is giving people all over the world that missing piece.  A superhero really doesn’t wear a cape, sometimes they have fins!

 Winter’s FOOTPRINT on the floor as you walk to her… SO COOL!

Winter’s amazing Timeline posted above where is home is…

Just a fun fact for you, when Dolphin Tale first released, that weekend, CMA received over 10,000 emails that hit their server and thousands of emails and letters from parents/children from all over the world sharing how Winter has inspired them.

So I leave you with this, I belive that Winter has given HOPE to so many out in the universe, that the universe decided to give Winter HOPE in return.  HOPE you are ready for the new movie!

 The tale of two friends that will last a LIFETIME.. (photo credit to CMA)

OH, and uh make sure you have a box of tissues with you…

If you want to see what Winter & Hope are up to, you can watch them on webcam 24/7.  Click here…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztM-ajPfcfs

Congratulations to Alisha at Willowberry Road for winning the free download to Gavin Degraw’s latest single, “You Got Me”!  I hope you enjoy it… 

 I received complimentary admission to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium as a Dolphin Tale 2 Ambassador. The review is written by me on behalf of  Warner Bros & Clearwater Marine Aquarium. The opinions expressed above are all mine.

The post Rescue, Rehab, Release…Inspire: Winter’s Story of HOPE first appeared on #NoOrdinaryLiz.