In years past, I've really tried to make cute, creative, unique costumes for my kids (like HERE.)This was not one of those years. I know I had an excuse - I was busy planning Joe's surprise party, then I was busy with writing stuff, then I was out of town to L.A., Orlando, and Sonoma, but still...
Instead of putting on my creativity hat when Jackson asked, "What should I be for Halloween," I think I said something like, "Put on your baseball uniform. Ta Da!" Actually, I got him a helmet, he wore his Bears jersey, and I slapped some mascara under his eyes. While we were in Disney World, I pulled a couple princess dresses off the rack and told the youngest girls, "You're going to be princesses." Clay wanted to be a monkey which was fine and dandy with me since we still had the perfectly good monkey costume he wore last year. Done. Austin didn't go trick-or-treating at all. He was content to pass candy out to kids. Savannah and a couple friends had decorated mathing orange t-shirts a few weeks ago, so they went out and did a little trick-or-treating with their decorative shirts and spray painted hair.
We never even went to a corn maze or to a farm or to pick out pumpkins or anything. I never even took out any of my Halloween decorations this year. I didn't put up a single window cling, nor a ghost, or pumpkin figurine. I didn't buy any hay, Indiana corn, apple cider, pumpkins or gourds. I didn't make any carmel apples. I didn't make any pumpkin pie. It's like we just bypassed fall and I have this fear that my kids are going to remember this one Halloween when we didn't do a darn thing to celebrate fall. They won't remember any of the times we went to corn mazes with our friends. They won't remember the hours I spent working on costumes. They won't remember carving pumpkins and toasting seeds. They'll remember the year we did nothing.
Or maybe they'll remember the cool trip to Disney World and forget all about this lame fall/Halloween. One can hope.
Oh well, at least I didn't make them go as crazy pickle arm guy.
First off, a few of you commented and/or took time to email me about my leg. Thank you for your concern! Today, my leg is totally fine - no pain, no redness, or swelling. I have really nasty varicose veins in my left leg and sometimes my leg just hurts. Ever since I developed a blood clot (and doctors learned that I have a clotting condition) a couple years ago, I just tend to get a little scared if I have pain in my leg. Thankfully, after soaking in the tub and lying down for a good night's sleep, it was fine and dandy this morning. I'll definitely remember to wear my sexy compression stockings the next time I travel though. :D
So, my retreat is winding down. I leave early tomorrow morning. I'm so glad I came though. I've met some really wonderful, talented, and encouraging folks here. I've learned some tips and gotten a lot of helpful information from the workshops. I think we've all had a good time.
My agent made it back here to the retreat this evening and gave us an update on her husband. Although the bleeding in his brain looks a bit worse, doctors reassured her that it was normal and they'll continue to closely monitor him. And thankfully, his memory has returned. As he recovers, they'll have to do some tests to determine if there are underlying problems that caused him to fall to begin with. If you're so inclined, I know that Janet and Loch would appreciate your prayers.
And here's a little story for you. Yesterday, Joe called me and said, "I have to tell you about my night."
"What happened?" I inquired.
"I think I had one of your typical nights."
"Uh oh. What happened," I repeated.
"Well, the computer wasn't working and I couldn't figure out how to get online. Savannah needed to do her homework on the computer so I called my sister to see if she could help me out. While I was on the phone with my sister, I heard Clay and Jackson fighting in their room. When I walked back there, Clay was throwing toys at Jackson and Jackson was tackling Clay."
"Ugh," I let out a sympathetic groan.
Joe went on, "I broke up their fight and told Jackson to get in the shower while I filled the bathtub for Clay."
"I went back to the computer and continued to talk to my sister while trying to get online. Meanwhile, Clay pooped in the bathtub. I had to stop again and go drain the tub and clean it out."
Why poop in the toilet when you can poop right there in the tub? Although I sympathized with Joe, I was also secretly glad I wasn't home to deal with that.
"And then," Joe continued, "Austin and Savannah started fighting and throwing pencils and calculators."
I had just finished telling someone at the retreat that Austin and Savannah never fight. "Oh they get along really, really well," I had bragged.
"Wow, sounds like a rotten night. I'm sorry, " I said.
Then today, out of nowhere, Joe texted me the following: "The smallest dog in history was a tiny yorkie from blackburn england. @2 yr old was 2" tall and 3" long. He weighed 4 ounces!"
I replied to this with the following loving message: "What is wrong with you???"
He responded, "I"m not interacting with any other adults."
LOL! Think he'll appreciate me a little more when I return?
Wow, what a fun retreat/workshop this has been so far! I've met so many wonderful authors! These people are just so warm and welcoming and sweet! After dinner last night, we each read a few sentences from our books or projects we're working on. It was really cool to listen to everyone read. We all have different styles and it was so interesting hearing those opening lines. It made me want to go out and buy a bunch of books!
We had some workshops today. We listened to Andrea, an editor from Revell, give an interesting talk about the market. Then I ran to my room during our little break so I could, um, get rid of all the coffee I'd had to drink. My key didn't work. I tried it several times and it just wouldn't work. so I quickly ran (while my legs were crossed, of course) to the front desk to report my clearly defective key.
"Did you put it next to any magnets," the front desk girl inquired.
"No," I said thinking the notion was preposterous. I don't carry magnets around with me.
"Was it near your cell phone? That would demagnetize it," she explained.
I looked down to where both my phone and my key rested in the same palm.
"Oops."
"No problem, moronMrs. Meehan. I'll get you a new key. Try not to screw this one up Have a nice day.
Then we had a workshop where Rachael spoke about incorporating humor into your writing. She gave a fun presentation and ended it with a lemon cream pie in her face. Yes, she did. I love that one of her tips for writing humor was "do stupid things". I made a mental check with that one. Done.
After our lunch, 9 of us went in a limo to a couple wineries for a tasting. I don't know anything about wine, but it was all yummy in my opinion. Many people dumped their wine out after taking a couple sips. But I was taught not to waste food. We took a little tour of the cave where they age the wine and got to taste some out of the barrel. When we returned to the shop I saw another author from the retreat in the store. I shouted an enthusiastic, "HEY!" to her. She looked at me like - do I know you? That's about when I realized she was not, in fact, another author but a complete stranger who thought I was drunk.
From there, we went to a winery owned by B. R. Cohn who is also the manager of the Doobie Brothers. We actually saw him there too! And a cute guy in a tractor, but that's another story... We tasted olive oil and balsamic vinegar there as well. Know what's really gross? Drinking a cup of vinegar. I don't recommend it.
We ended the evening at a restaurant where Bobby Flay supposedly ate last night. The food was super-delicious! Actually, that's where I ended my night. Many others are still up, but I think I'm still on Eastern time and I'm tired. I'm also a little scared that I might have developed a blood clot in my leg so I wanted to prop it up. I can't tell if it's so sore from my nasty varicose veins or if a clot has formed from all the travel and sitting for long periods of time on the plane. We'll see how it is tomorrow.
And speaking of seeing how things are tomorrow, my agent's husband fell earlier today. I'm not sure about the details, but I believe he hit his head and from what I heard, he didn't remember his wife. Obviously she left the conference and went with her husband to the ER. Thankfully they live near here so hopefully his doctor can check on him. Pray for healing for Loch and strength and peace for Janet.
And, as always, here are a few pictures...
olive tree barrels of wine the 9 of us wine tour girls at Kunde Estates
my room
Just in case you were thinking about bringing your horse to the park, you can't.
the mission prettiful view cute little walkway here in Sonoma. It's a cute little town with a lot of boutique-y shops. And people are really nice. They stop for you when you're crossing the street and they don't even try to hit you.
Let me tell ya, having a washer and dryer in our room was so great!!! I came home and only had to do 2 loads of laundry! Everyone was able to just unpack their suitcase and put their clean, folded clothes into their drawers. Ta Da!
The kids were awesome on the flight home last night. I never heard a peep out of them. Of course, they were all pretty exhausted.
I'm proud that I managed to get myself up and to church this morning too. I even came up with a decent Sunday school lesson to boot!
The kids are all sad we had to leave, but happy to be home at the same time. There's just something about sinking into your own bed. Ahhhhh. I'm excited to make all my pictures and video clips into a vacation movie for the kids to watch! But that'll have to wait. I leave bright and stinkin' early in the morning for California again. My agent is having a retreat/workshop for her clients in Sonoma. (I guess I do get a little vacation from my vacation after all.) I'm looking forward to meeting all these wonderful authors and learning from them. I feel like an out-of-place dork among these professionals, but as long as they don't suddenly stop in front of me while I'm walking, I'm sure I'll love spending time with them and getting to know them all! :)
I'm off to pack and spend a little time with the kids before I have to leave again. It'll be a little strange, after spending every minute with my family 24/7 for the past week, to be by myself for the next few days. And I think I need to come up with something for dinner that Brooklyn will eat. I swear she lived on ketchup, fries, Diet Coke and ice cream last week. I, on the other hand, gained 7 pounds in the last 2 weeks! Sheesh! It probably would've been more like 30 pounds if I hadn't walked 50,000 miles. I think I'll have some lettuce for dinner.
Oh yeah, and I've completely lost my voice. I can't scream at the kids now. I can't talk at all now. :(
We slept in a bit this morning and just hung out in our hotel room while it rained outside. When the rain slowed down, we got ready and headed for Epcot. We got there about noon. I think we checked out every exhibit/ride at the front of the park except for Soaring because the line was really long and they were out of fast passes and Honey, I Shrunk the Audience because, judging by the Bug's Life Show, we figured the little kids would freak out. Tell me, are there any Disney fanatics out there who remember what The Land ride used to be like? I could swear there were fruits and veggies that sang, "Listen to the laaaand, listen to the land." I remember the ride smelling like oranges. It's nothing like I remember. Can anyone back me up on this? Another ride I remember was a submarine in Magic Kingdom. I think it may have been a 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ride. There's nothing like that there now. Does anyone remember this?
Anyway, we had a fun few hours at Epcot. We left early and came back to our room for sandwiches and cupcakes (it's Joe's birthday today.) While the kids were eating, I walked around the rooms picking up and folding clothes. I gathered coloring books, dolls, toys, and such and got things packed up. Oh my gosh, I didn't realize just how trashed the kids' bedroom had become! HOLY COW! The poor housekeeping people! They must have been scared out of their minds to enter that side of our room! I bet they did Rock, Paper, Scissors with each other to see who got stuck wading through the clothes, toys, and wet towels to make the bed.
Anyway, I saw that there were a ton of questions about Disney, so I thought I'd answer them here since I'll probably miss Sunday Sound Out again this week. (We get home late Saturday night and I leave really early Monday morning.)
You will Twitter won't you? How can we survive a WHOLE week without a Twitter? You've got me hooked! You and me both! It's a sickness. Can't. Stop. Twittering.
I don't know if you are bringing your own stroller or not, but I am a HUGE fan of the ones that you can rent there...they really are easy to push/steer and great when the smaller kids get tired of walking.
We just used our own stroller every day except for when we did the world pavillion at Epcot. We knew there would be a lot of walking around the countries there so we rented a double stroller that day. You're right, they steer very easily and are easy to push even with a couple bigger kids in them. But it's $31 for a double stroller for the day. Yikes! I suggest people bring their own. Especially if you're flying - who wants to carry little ones through the airport?
Hey Dawn! I, too, spent an entire day at Celebration Hospital when we were there on vacation! Did you get to see much of the city of Celebration?
I only saw the hallway in the hospital. They never even got me in a room while I was there dying of pain.
I have to ask, what was the reaction from the younger kids when they woke up Saturday morning and you told them you were going to Disney that day instead of Monday?
They were really surprised and excited. Lexi said, "Today? We're leaving today?" a couple times.
Where are you staying?
We're staying at the Marriott Grande Vista. The last time we were here, I was so thoroughly impressed with everything. I've been a little disappointed this time. Housekeeping has forgotten to leave us towels a couple times and the room just doesn't seem quite as clean as it was last year. The one side of the room has a nasty, musty smell that just hasn't gone away.
When you get a hotel, do you get two adjoining rooms?
We got a 2 bedroom villa.
Were you able to see the Lion King show? Did you try the train? We didn't see the Lion King show this time, but we saw it 7 years ago when we were there. It was great! And yes, we rode the train in Animal Kingdom.
SSO question for you: How did you decide to pull the kids out of school for a week for a vacation?
We only took them out 3 days because they had some days off this week. I didn't worry about the younger kids. Austin and Savannah will probably have more work to make up, but they both get really good grades so I wasn't too concerned.
P.S. (Let us know how the SafetyTats work with all the swimming, sunscreen, etc.)
Lexi and Brooklyn are still wearing the same ones I put on them on Sunday. They've had baths, they've gone swimming, and they've had suncreen slathered on them. They're still stuck on and you can still clearly read the phone number. Clay peeled his off after 4 days, so I just stuck a new one on him.
Do all the employees call you princess? Because I found that it doesn't matter how old you are--if you are female you are a princess in the eyes of the Disney employees, and if you are male you are a pirate. Everyone calls you princess
Hmmm, no one's called me a princess. What's up with that???
Are you guys using fast pass? Just wanna make sure! Absolutely! For those who don't know, some of the more popular rides offer "fast passes". You can put your ticket in a machine near the ride, and the machine will spit out a fast pass that enables you to return to the ride later in the day and bypass the long wait line. You either have a very short wait, or sometimes you can pretty much just walk up and get on the ride. Poor little Princess Brooklyn. What happened to her chinnie chin chin? She tripped and hit her chin on an end table in our room. She had just woken up and was still a little loopy when it happened.
I just wanted to say you look so pretty in the family picture and you've gotten so skinny!!
I am so not. It's just the angle. Believe me, I don't put the disgusting, fat pictures of me on my blog!
So did you buy anything in the gift shops? I do love those princess Mickey ears!
Eh, we got a couple gifts for people, passports for all 6 kids, ears for the 3 youngest, a necklace for Jax, and a couple charms for Savannah. Austin has yet to pick out something. Honestly though, the kids have been awesome. They've haven't been asking for stuff at all.
You are scaring me as I plan our trip for the busiest week of the year!! How about some tips about what to do for a princess that is Brooklyn's age to make it as nice as possible? Thanks!
A stroller that reclines so she can sleep! Seriously, I wouldn't recommend doing parks every day like we've done. I had bought these park hopper passes several years ago and they had 7 days on them. I didn't want to waste any, so we've been doing a LOT of park hopping. I think 3 or 4 days of parks with downtime in between the days would be ideal. Just my opinion.
have your younger children had a more difficult time other than for obvious reasons?
They've been troopers! They've all done better than I had hoped actually!
Great family pic and I have to agree I love your shirt....where did you get it?
I got it at Old Navy, but it's a few years old because I'm just that cutting edge with fashion.
Your kids are always going to talk about this. I bet as adults you'll hear "Remember when..." often. So cool.
Yeah, "Remember when Mom lost it and called that grumpy old man a buttmunch?" "Remember when Mom lost Clayton while looking for a table in that restaurant by Small World?" "Remember when Mom and Dad made us see that bug show that scared the crap out of us and scarred us for life?"
You didn't mention the French pastry shop, my all-time must-visit place at EPCOT.
I mentioned it on Twitter. I said I was in France and there was all this wine and all these pastries and I was too full to try any of it. :( I was very sad. I considered making myself throw up so I'd have to room to try some pastries. OK, no I didn't. You know how much I hate vomit!
(Im asking coz of twitter update) which rides were your kids scared of and why?
Jackson was scared of the Dinosaur ride in Animal Kingdom and the Haunted Mansion in Magic Kingdom. The 4 youngest were scared of the It's Tough to be a Bug show in Animal Kingdom. On the other hand, Lex and Clay surprised me because they weren't scared of the Haunted Mansion or Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Lex wasn't scared of Space Mountain or Rock N Roller Coaster either.
Looks like you guys are having a great time! And is Miss Angie from Forida? I'm from Ohio and I spend time in North Carolina yearly. I swear everybody below the Ohio River thinks that people in the north have accents. I've been called a yankee while in NC. Then I've had people from Canada tell me I have a southern accent. Nobody can make up their mind. Yep, Angie's from Florida and I couldn't have more of a non-accent!
I have to disagree about the Enchanted Tiki House. It may be lame, but I love it. I'm sure it's because I remember that "ride" being featured on the Wonderful World of Color in the 1960s, when Disney World was just being built, and I was fascinated by the animatronics. It's a sweet nostalgic experience for me.
OK, my mom could've written this. This was one of her favorites which was part of the reason I wanted to see it this week. It didn't bring back nostalgic memories for me though and despite the fact they modernized the show with Zazu and Iago, I still thought it was lame.
I was wondering if you could share the name of the hotel you guys are staying in. My family and I are going to Disney in April and I've been looking everywhere online for a hotel/villa that offers a full kitchen and nice pools that's actually a NICE hotel. Would you be able to share that with us?
It's the Marriott Grande Vista. I know there's a Sheraton Vistana down the street that has villas with kitchens and nice pools too. Both hotels also offer activities for kids which is nice if you're not going to parks every day. Those are certainly not the only 2 around either. I just know people who have stayed at both and they were pleased. There are actually dozens around here. I checked sites like Orbitz, Travelocity, and Expedia to get an idea of what was out there and then went directly to the hotel's sites to get the best price. You can use an Entertainment book for coupons if you have one. Maybe even check with a travel agent for any deals. By attending the time share thing, I was able to save several hundred dollars plus they gave us some Disney dollars to use as well. I think you're probably safe if you do a time share at a well-known hotel chain (like Marriott, for example). I think you'll be dealing with professional people who, yes, want to sell time share units, but who also know it's important that you leave with a good feeling about their brand and are willing to come back and or tell friends about it. I'm not sure about this, but that's my theory.
If you want to stay on Disney Property, the All Star Resorts are the least expensive of Disney hotels. If you have a larger family, you may have to book 2 adjoining rooms, but you'll have the free transportation between parks that comes with staying in a Disney hotel. If you're only planning on doing Disney, you won't need to rent a car.
I'm really not any kind of expert on this stuff though. I suggest you go to your library and get The Unofficial Guide to Disney World and/or check out this site - MouseSavers.com
My friend Denise urged me to make dinner reservations months ago. I kept telling her that I didn't want to be tied down.
"We're more of a "fly by the seat of your pants" kind of family," I insisted.
She came back with, "You know what they call families who don't make dinner reservations in Disney?"
"No, what?" I asked. "Hungry," she said.
Well we haven't gone hungry and we haven't had to spend tons of money eating out. Although I will admit that it might have been nice to have one or two nice sit-down dinners/breakfasts scheduled. If we ever come back, I think I'll have to break down and make a reservation or two.
Another thing friends told me to do was to come up with a plan of which parks you're visiting on which days. "Map out your route so you'll know which rides to hit first and which ones you should get fast passes for. Decide the most effective way to get to everything on your list.
OK, this is just not us. Sure, maybe we could've done more with less waiting if I'd mapped everything out, but we have six kids! We have to be flexible. We've just kinda gone with the flow this week. There have been very few things we missed. We've gotten to experience tons of things in each park. Because we haven't been tied to a schedule, we've been able to take breaks, eat, go on rides, go to shows whenever we felt like it. If one of the kids was hungry or tired, it was no big deal to grab some drinks and sit down and chill out for a while. This is something to consider, I guess. What kind of family are you? Type A - must have everything planned and know what you're doing when? Or are you a more laid-back, go with the flow, play-it-by-ear type family?
Here's hoping you had a great time at the Hollywood Studios. And I have to know... how do you sleep 8 in the two bedroom villa? I saw the 2 bedroom villa (our original room was a connecting one with the 2 bedroom), and .. We have 2 king size beds and 2 queen sleeper sofas so it's no problem.
Wow. Ok, weird that the park is closed on Fri and Sat.
OK, I'm just an idiot. The park isn't closed. Along with the maps of the park, they hand out these papers with the current park hours and attraction and show times. On the schedule, it listed park hours for Mon, Tues, and Wed. Then it listed different hours for Thurs, and Sun. It didn't list any hours at all for Fri and Sat. I assumed the park was closed those days. Duh. Of course it's not closed. I'm thinking maybe it was an oversight on this paper? Either that or I'm just extra stupid and, despite examining the paper 5 times, I'm just missing where it lists Fri and Sat hours.
Hey Dawn! Just curious how you guys handle it if you and Joe both want to go on a ride, but not all the kids do. Do you have to ride in two different groups? Which would mean waiting through line twice?!?!
Usually we switch off. When we get in line, we get a "switch ticket". The switch ticket kinda works like a fast pass. I'll go with the older kids while Joe watches the little ones, for example. When I come out, Joe will get in the fast pass line while I watch the little ones. The cool part is that the parent switching off can take up to 3 people with them so they don't have to ride alone. My kids got double rides a few times by doing this.
Did you get in trouble when you took that picture on the Great Movie ride? I took a picture of Mary Poppins when I was on it and I was quickly reprimanded by the tour guide...."I repeat, No Flash Photography!" At which point my kids all laughed and said "Yeah, listen to the rules next time!"
I didn't use my flash. I have a good camera. If there was enough light on the attraction, I just snapped pictures without my flash. If there wasn't enough light, the pictures turned out a bit blurry and I just deleted them.
To quote Ben Franklin:"Guests, and Disney family vacations, like fish, begin to smell after three days. "
Ben Franklin said this, huh? LOL!
How did brooklyn like the flights was she scared at all?
Brooklyn was fine on the flight. She wanted to get up and switch seats as we were landing and got pretty mad that she couldn't, but other than that, the kids were all great on the plane.
foodwise what did you do with Jackson on the trip? Did you keep him on Feingold's, or at least as much as you could?
Ugh. No. We decided we didn't want to even try. Jackson has had a free week and although he's loving every minute of being able to eat what he wants, his behavior has been pretty bad. That part has not been fun. I can't wait to get him back to the diet when we get home.
I just love this face! She was in a mood (as usual).
Fish are friends; not food. People, on the other hand...
Brooklyn didn't want to go near any shark!
and finally, the traditional picture of Brooklyn passed out cold
And here's the video I tried to put up yesterday. This is why you never want to visit parks for more than 2 or 3 days in a row.
We've all officially lost it, I think. Austin is tired and weepy. Jackson is being ornery. Clay is off his rocker wacko. Lexi is weepy. Savannah's just tired. Brooklyn is having meltdowns (not that that's different than any other day, of course.) I've lost all patience with all humanity. Let me stress one more time for anyone planning a Disney trip. Do NOT plan on visiting parks every day. Trust me on this one. You can actually tell how many days a person has been visiting parks by the way they act.
When someone holds a door for you or says, "Go ahead," when you're trying to get in line for a ride, you can tell that this is their first day at a park. If you see a person happily snapping pictures of their child in front of every exhibit, it's probably their first day. If you see people browsing through gift shops or saying, "An hour wait really isn't that long. Let's get in line!" assume it's their first day.
If a person accidentally cuts you off, then turns around and says, "Oh excuse me!" you can tell that they're probably on their second day. If you overhear, "I don't want to wait for an hour, let's get a fast pass and come back," it's probably their second day of visiting parks.
If you see someone dragging their child along while that child whines, "I'm tired! Can't we just go back to the hotel and swim?" it's a good bet it's their third day in the wild world of Disney. If that same parent looks like they haven't slept in days and they're walking like there are hot knives stabbed in their calves, it's probably their third day at the parks.
If you're in line waiting for a ride and you see a parent turn to their child and say, through gritted teeth, "Do you have any idea how much this vacation cost? You'd better start showing a little appreciation, young man!" you can safely bet they're on their fourth day of park hopping. If you hear someone say, "Another gift shop??? Does every ride end in a stinkin' gift shop?" it may just be their fourth day touring the amusement parks. If you see a person purposely ram their stroller into the ankles of the idiot who dared to stop in front of them, it's likely they're on their fourth day at Disney.
If you stop in front of someone and that person shoots laser beams from their eyes at you, they're on their fifth (or more) day of park hopping. If you overhear a conversation that goes a little like, "I've spent our mortgage on stupid souvenirs. Don't you dare ask me for anything else!!!" rest assured that person is definitely on their fifth day in the "happiest place on earth". If you hear a parent tell their child, "I am NOT waiting in line for 20 minutes to meet Winnie the Pooh! It's a GUY in a COSTUME! And you know what else? We're never taking another vacation as long as we live!" they're on their last day of touring.
Actually, We did Hollywood Studios today. I didn't even realize the park was closed on Friday and Saturday! It closes on Friday and Saturday??? Crazy. Clearly, I didn't do my research ahead of time. Thankfully we made it there today. We had fun and the weather cooperated for us. It was cloudy and comfortable all day and the rain didn't come until late. The kids were bummed because they really wanted to go on the new Toy Story ride and we didn't get the chance to do it. They were out of fast passes by the time we got there and there was a 100 minute wait. Joe and I were not willing to stand there for more than an hour and a half with 6 kids who were all over-tired. Instead, we walked across the park so we could do the Rock n Roller Coaster one more time. There was an hour wait there. It was a little after 8:00 and we wanted to see the Fantasmic show so we told the kids there wasn't time to go on the roller coaster again.
We got in line for Fantasmic and waited about 20 minutes before deciding that we just couldn't deal with the kids being so tired and crabby/wacko. We decided to just leave. Since we were surrounded by like 5 billion people with no way out other than the wheelchair path, we just walked down the wheelchair path. A grumpy old man in a wheelchair yelled at us, "This is the path for wheelchairs!" (There was plenty of room for him to pass us and the fact that we were trying to escape the hordes didn't block him anyway.) I believe I called him a buttmunch as I walked away. Yes, it was one of my finer moments. As you can tell, it's our fifth day of park hopping.
We made our way to the parking lot and just reached our car when it started raining again. Instead of thinking, "Whew! We made it before the rain! Good choice to leave!", I thought, "Ha ha, the grumpy old wheelchair man is getting wet!" I'm telling ya, Disney brings out the worst in folks (me included!)
This evening I realized my debit card was missing. I'm not sure if I left if at the grocery store or what. I'm going to call the store in the morning and if they don't have it, I guess I'll have to cancel it. Ugh. (I just found it before publishing this post! Hooray! It was in my purse, of all the crazy places....)
The kids have been surprising me. Jackson is afraid of a lot of rides that I never thought he'd be scared of. And Lexi (the same Lexi who cried for like an hour after she went on Journey to Atlantis last year) has become a roller coaster fiend! She loves all of them! Rock n Roller Coaster, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Space Mountain, you name it.
There is no way on earth I'd set foot on the Tower of Terror so I offered to take the 3 little kids to Playhouse Disney while Joe and Austin went on T of T and Savannah and Jackson waited for them. All of us, but Clay and Brooklyn, went on Rock N Roller Coaster. I'd forgotten what a fast start that roller coaster gets. It's like a shot! I love it, but I think I have whiplash. The good thing is, I couldn't catch my breath enough to scream, which made my kids happy.
Here are a couple pictures and a little video that illustrates just how my kids act when they're really tired. (I wasn't able to get the video to work and I'm falling asleep sitting here. I'll try again tomorrow.)
Rock N Roller Coaster
The Wizard of Oz part of The Great Movie Ride
The new Pixar section
The kids around the entrance of The Great Movie Ride
Look familiar? It's a replica of Grauman's Chinese Theater
These were used in a Pirates of the Caribbean movie
Brooklyn asleep again
Joe and the kids on the back lot - looks like San Francisco here Pizza Planet
Joe and I sat through our first (and likely last) time share presentation. When I booked this hotel, I was told that they'd knock several hundred dollars off the price if we'd agree to go for a 90 minute golf cart tour of the property. Although I wasn't keen on the idea of having my vacation interrupted by a time share talk, the savings were enough to make me agree to it (after I was assured that my kids could come along with us.)
Long story short - there was no golf cart. There was no tour. There was 90 minutes of talking. I'll admit that the salesperson wasn't annoying or pushy. I mean, of course she was trying to sell a time share unit, but she really wasn't overbearing. The whole plan sounds nice and I understand the benefits to it, but I had to tell her, "Um this is the first non-camping family vacation we've ever taken (other than when Savannah won a 3 day trip to Disney and when the PR folks at Discovery Cove sent us there - we didn't pay for either of those trips.)" I can see where this would be good for the families who vacation every year or every other year, but did you understand the part where I said this is our first family vacation???
Anyway, the kids were actually pretty good there. We declined the time share; the salesperson sent in her manager. We declined his offer and we left. It really was 90 minutes.
After that, we went to the Magic Kingdom again for a few hours. We saw a couple attractions that we didn't have time for the other day. The kids wanted to go on some of the same rides again and we were able to do that today too.
While I was there, I had the chance to meet up with a fellow blogger and Chicagoan, Michelle from HonestAndTruly.blogspot.com. It's a weird coincidence that we live near each other, we were both going to Orlando at the same time, we're staying in the same hotel, we both had nasty smelling rooms at first and had to switch, and we both went to Magic Kingdom today! I met her, her sweet parents, and her totally cute kids in Tomorrowland.
We left Magic Kingdom at about 5:30 and came back to our room where we met Angie from GoodForTheKids.com and her 2 cutie girls. We ate dinner outside at the pool and watched the kids swim for a while. Angie told me I have an accent. I so do NOT have any kind of accent. She obviously didn't hear the English/Scottish women talking yesterday!
While we were outside at the pool, we saw a guy who looked familiar. It was the crazy ole birdman! It was the same guy we saw when we were at this hotel last year! Really, there's a picture of him HERE from my post about Discovery Cove last year. (BTW, although Disney is fun, Discovery Cove is a fun, relaxing vacation!)
I soaked my aching feet in the hot tub while the kids swam and they feel so much better now. I may eventually walk again. I think I'll probably be able to compile some tips and do's and don't's for Disney World by the end of this week. I'll give you a couple "don'ts" right now though. Don't bother going to the Enchanted Tiki Room. It's lame. If you ride on Aladdin's flying carpet ride, be prepared to get spit on by a camel. (I didn't see that one coming!) Bypass Stitch's Escape because it's kinda stupid for one thing and it'll scare little kids for another. Don't forget your cell phone if you go to the Monster's Inc. Laugh Floor. You can text in jokes while you're waiting in line and they may use your joke in the show. I think a lot of the humor goes over the heads of little kids, but it was a short enjoyable show, in my opinion. It was kinda like Who's Line is It Anyway, in that it includes a bit of improv. Because of that, they show will be a little different every time you see it. Skip the Swiss Family Tree House. No kid has a clue about that show. Heck, most adults I know, don't remember the show. Basically, you just walk up like 6000 steps and see a bedroom in a tree house and then you walk down another 21,000 steps to ground. Yes, I counted the steps.
And the last tip for today - Don't plan on visiting theme parks every day of your vacation. Believe me, it is not a vacation to walk 50,000 miles in a week. It's too much for you and the kids. My kids were acting up this morning after the fun-filled time share thing, but thankfully they settled down when we got to the park. I, however, was on a rampage. I seriously fantasized about mowing people over with the stroller all day. Seriously, why do people just STOP in the middle of a walkway??? Why? Do they not notice the 4 billion people walking behind them? Do they not get the concept of moving over to the side of the road or sidewalk? Grrrr.
Other than my near explosion, we had another great day. The weather was beautiful, the park wasn't too crowded and we were able to do a lot of fun things with the kids.
Tomorrow we plan on spending a long day at MGM or Hollywood Studios or whatever it's called these days. It looks like it's supposed to rain the next couple days so maybe the parks will be empty. We'll see.
Here are a few pictures before I hit the sack...
The kids being goofy with, well Goofy.
I had to get a picture of Austin with Dumbo. When he was little, he was obsessed with elephants and he watched our Dumbo videotape so many times, he wore it out. Literally.
Captain Jack Sparrow on The Pirates of the Caribbean ride
The Jungle Boat Cruise
Brooklyn being unusually happy on the monorail
Me and Michelle
Lexi and Brooklyn with Angie's kids, Claire and Anna (I've got to hand it to Austin and Savannah too. They played with and watched the little kids in the water for a long time this evening. Even our waitress commented on what great teenagers I have and she's right. They're good kids. I'm proud.)
First off, I know you guys have asked a lot of questions in your comments and I'll definitely answer them. I'm just not taking the time to go through and answer them while I'm still here because I really don't want to be attached to my computer. I am going to have one looong Sunday Sound Out when I get to them!
We had a lazy morning and slept in a bit, had some pancakes in our room and went for a swim. We hit Epcot around noon. It wasn't crowded at all which was wonderful! It wasn't as hot today either (especially when the sun was behind clouds) which was nice. We went on Spaceship Earth when we first arrived because you can't go to Epcot and not go in the sphere. They've changed that a little bit from the last time I was there (as a kid).
Then we headed over to the world pavilion. We started at Mexico and made our way to every country. They sell these passports there and kids can take them around and get them stamped in each country they visit. I have to admit that the world showcase can be kinda boring for the little kids because there aren't too many rides or exhibits that young kids would find interesting. The passports gave them something to do - look for the "kidcot" station and get a stamp in their book. They also have a little craft that's free and kids can go from country to country and add an item to their craft at each stop.
Joe and I had fun eating our way through the countries. We could easily have spent a small fortune doing this! Especially if we'd gone with our friends Jenny and Chris, who like to eat as much as we do! We had some yummy thing (forgot what it was called) and churros in Mexico, these delicious waffle-like pastries with jam in Norway, eggrolls, potstickers, and veggie stir fry in China, pretzels in Germany, falafel, couscous, and baklava in Morocco, sushi (California rolls because the kids wanted to try it) in Japan, and spanikopita and melamakarona at a Greek stand. There may have been more, but I can't remember. It was all delicious!
We have to get up early tomorrow because we agreed to listen to a 90 minute time share dealy. That knocked several hundred dollars off the price of our room so we decided it was worth it. After that, I think we'll hit Magic Kingdom again for a couple hours. We want to do a couple things we didn't have time for yesterday and the kids want to do a couple favorite rides again. We plan on calling it an early night and coming back to our room for spaghetti.
Oh, for those of you who were wondering if we have to get 2 rooms - we got a 2 bedroom villa off Disney property. It has a full kitchen and a washer and dryer in the room. Even when I factored in the cost of a rental car, parking, and gas, it was cheaper than staying on site. Actually, scratch that. I think the cheaper Disney hotels (All Star ones) were about the same, but we'd have to get 2 adjoining rooms and there was no kitchen or laundry.
This way, we went down the street to Publix and bought eggs, bagels, pop, water, juice, milk, bread, peanut butter, cereal, fruit, and snacks. We have breakfast in our room every day and take snacks and water into the parks. Some days, we've stopped for dinner on the way to the hotel at a casual restaurant off site. We've gotten some food at the parks too. It gets expensive dining out all the time and you tend to eat more garbage when you eat out constantly, in my opinion. It's been really nice getting to have some meals in our room.
I suppose, if money were no object (or for smaller families) staying on site would be more convenient. There are definitely advantages to it. But for us, this is working out nicely.
Oh, here's a funny story. Or more like a story that highlights my dorkness. While we were at the pool this morning, I overheard two people talking in a foreign language. I was lying in the sun with my eyes closed so I didn't see them, but I could hear their conversation. I thought to myself, that's an interesting language. It sounds a little familiar, but I can't figure out what language it is. What are they speaking? Then I was able to pick out the words, "flew out of Manchester..." Manchester? That's in England, isn't it? Oh my gosh! They're speaking ENGLISH! I swear I've never heard thicker English accents in my life. I seriously didn't understand more than half the words they spoke. And it was ENGLISH for crying out loud. And it's not like you don't hear that accent around here. There are a lot of English people who vacation here. Their pound goes so far here in America. It works out well for them. Honestly, the only word I recognized was "aye" because they said that a lot. It's amazing that the same language can sound so different!
OK, I've got to get some sleep, but I'll leave you with a couple of the 200 or so pictures I took today. By the time this trip is over, I'm going to be able to make a 4 hour video for the kids to watch again and again.
Spaceship Earth
Inside Mexico - it's really gorgeous in here
Brooklyn the Viking
a whole crew of Vikings
China
Clay and Brooklyn giving Mushu a hug. They kept saying, "I love you dragon."
Germany - a whole lotta people were celebrating Oktoberfest!
It's Godzilla! Or a tiny lizard on the roof of a house in a train set.
Italy
This is where Brooklyn played dead on the streets of Morocco.
Savannah making a phone call in England. According to the kids, this leads to the Ministry of Magic.
Sooo tired. We spent the whole day at the Magic Kingdom. The kids all had a great time and there were no major meltdowns. It was pretty hot today so we tried to find rides that took us out of the sun. It was pretty crowded, in my opinion and we had to wait 30-50 minutes for most rides. I'd hate to see the place in summer!
When we first walked in, a woman came up to me and said, "I read your blog!" Hee hee! I was recognized! I was giddy for like half an hour! Here's a shout-out to Melissa from Arkansas who recognized me! (At least I hope that's her name. I'm horrible with names. If I got it wrong, I apologize. I'm so sorry!)
I think Disney is overpriced and I hate how they route half the rides to exit through a gift shop. I think it's really cost prohibitive for the average family. Until this year, there was no way we could afford such a trip. Still, I have to admit there's something magical about the place. Their attention to detail amazes me. From the employees' costumes, to the music, the design of the buildings, the decor and decorative accents, and the landscaping, everything just flows and blends with the area it's in.
Right now, my legs are hurting so badly I may never walk again. I'm going to hit the shower, take large doses of Advil and drop into bed, but I'll leave you with a couple pictures...
Nice hats, boys!
Ya mon!
Move over Junior!
Oooo pretty pink castle
Clay getting his second wind (aka: Clay spazzes out!)
I a princess mouse, Mama!
I'm not a pirate. I'm a princess pirate!
Clay being Dumbo
Here we are! Magic Kingdom!
Everybody sing with me! "It's a small world after all. It's a small world after all. It's a small world after all. It's a small, small, world......"
We all slept later than we had planned, but after traveling and staying up a bit too late last night, it didn't surprise us. We had originally planned to go to Magic Kingdom today, but when we realized it was Sunday, we decided it would probably be a bit crowded so we opted to hit Animal Kingdom instead. It wasn't bad - I think the longest we waited for a ride was 30 minutes. We saw the It's Rough to Be a Bug show first. The 3 youngest left in tears. They're traumatized for life. I can just see them telling their therapists 20 years from now, "...and then my parents took me to this evil bug show in Disney World and I haven't been the same since..."
The highlight for the little kids was this flying triceratops ride (like the Dumbo ride). They went on it 5 times and smiled from ear to ear each time. :) Austin, Jackson, Joe and I all braved Expedition Everest. That was one fun roller coaster! Yeti, yeti, yeti, yeti, yeti! (Sorry, I just had a Backyardigans moment.) Austin, Savannah, Lexi and I loved the Dinosaur ride. It freaked me out the first time, but I went a second time and it was pretty cool. You know, if you like whipping around corners in the dark while flesh-eating dinosaurs chase you and meteorites rain down on you.
We also saw Finding Nemo the Musical because, according to Austin, a billboard stated it was a "must see show", therefore we must see it. It was pretty good. Brooklyn fell asleep before the show started and Clay was getting a little bored at that point so he kept playing with Brooklyn's hair and arm while she snoozed. What are big brothers for?
We decided to make it an early day and left the park by 5:30. We let the kids swim for a little bit and now everyone's getting ready for bed. We want to get up early tomorrow so we don't miss one minute of family fun at WallyWorld!
We left our house at 8:30 this morning and headed to O’Hare airport to begin our adventure. I had checked in online last night, but couldn’t get my printer to work, so we had to stand in line to print out our boarding passes. Unfortunately, dork that I am, I hadn’t written down the confirmation number and I didn’t have my frequent flyer card with me so I couldn’t pull up our flight information. I kept looking at the screen, thinking there had to be an option where I could look up my flight info by name. Nope. The screen kept asking me, “Do you need more time?” I thought to myself that I didn’t need more time; what I needed was psychic ability so I could discern my confirmation number. The screen then flashed, “Are you stupid? Did you not know that you were going to need a boarding pass? Why on earth wouldn’t you have your confirmation number written down?” Then the screen flashed the message, “Do you see the phone to your left? We put that there for idiots like you. Pick it up so a customer service representative can help you.”
I picked up the phone, gave the voice on the other end my name and the poor customer service rep who gets stuck dealing with imbeciles like me all day, helped me with my confirmation number so I could print out our boarding passes. We checked our luggage and moved on to the security check-point.
Upon arrival at security, a gentleman looked at all of us and counted the tickets, then looked at all of us again.
“You have SIX kids???”
“Uh yeah.”
“Really? Six?”
“Still yeah.”
“Wow.”
So he checked off all our tickets and we proceeded through security. Everything went pretty smoothly there with me and the kids. Joe set the alarm off 4 times though. I think he was trying to get strip searched.
The flight was uneventful. Clay had a hard time sitting still and I was constantly reminding him not to kick his feet. The poor woman in front of him probably had an exceptionally enjoyable flight. Not.
We went to pick up our rental van and the guy quoted me a price that was about $200 more than my email confirmation. I argued with him for several minutes and finally gave up. It was hot, the kids were restless, and we were all really hungry. I’ll look at the agreement more closely tonight.
We stopped at Ihop on the way to the hotel for an early dinner. The bathroom was out of order. The credit card machine was out of order and apparently they were completely out of fresh fruit. It’s FLORIDA! How does a restaurant in sunny Florida run out of fresh fruit???
Then it was on to the hotel. We were totally spoiled when we were here last October courtesy of the folks at Discovery Cove. This time our room wasn’t as nice, it wasn’t near a pool, and it smelled like someone had bladder control issues on the carpet. We requested a different room and got one right by a pool. It never hurts to ask!
Right now, Austin has a bad migraine that came on suddenly. I gave him some medicine and he fell asleep so I’m hanging out in the room with him. Meanwhile Joe has taken the other five down to the pool. I can hear them laughing and playing and it’s making me smile. I can also hear the sound of a waterfall in the background and Jimmy Buffet singing Cinco de Mayo in Memphis. The air is warm and (unlike California) very humid, but there’s a nice breeze rustling through the palm fronds out here on the balcony.
Ahhhh, this is going to be a nice family vacation. Although I really wasn’t looking forward to it, I’m anticipating a lot of fun, excitement on the kids’ faces, and some great family time. Yes, you can laugh at me come Wednesday when we’re all sick and tired of being confined together and the kids are all wired on artificial flavors and colors and the “GO GO GO “ factor has set in and everyone is having crab attacks. But for tonight, we’re going to enjoy each other’s company as we head to the grocery store to get some breakfast items and snacks before we call it an early night.
Savannah won a trip to Disney World about 7 years ago. I filled out a contest form in a Disney store at a mall by me. I remember my sister was with me at the time. My sister HATES to shop and I recall her standing there, looking bored, saying, "No one ever wins those things, let's get out of here!"
I was at a meeting when the call came in to inform us we'd won the grand prize. My husband answered the phone and almost hung up on them thinking it was some time share scam. He called me at my meeting and asked if I knew anything about a Cinderella Disney trip. LOL!
Anyway, we spent one day in the parks. The next day, we stayed in the Magic Kingdom all day doing stuff/getting pictures taken and such because of the contest. Savannah, my mom, and I spent the whole third day in Celebration Hospital (it was NOT a celebration, by the way). I was dying of pain from a stupid kidney stone and Savannah had a bad ear infection. That was the end of that trip. I only had 4 kids at the time and Lexi was just a baby. Austin and Savannah are the only ones who remember anything from the trip.
So, this will be the first real vacation we're taking to Disney. I'm honestly kicking myself for setting up this trip because Disney World is just so ridiculously expensive. Thankfully I had already purchased the park tickets about six years ago thinking we'd make it there eventually, so I didn't have that expense. But still...
But the kids keep talking about the trip. I'm sure they're going to love it because they keep saying things like, "Do we have to go?" Can't we go to Discovery Cove instead? Could we go camping?" Yep, makes me feel all warm and fuzzy about spending the money on this trip.
So, I'll be bringing my laptop, but I don't know how much updating I'll do. I'm sure I'll have some pictures to share at least. I'm going to try to just relax and enjoy being with the kids without other distractions this week. Well, as much as I can relax while watching 6 kids in a ginormous park where someone is bound to get separated from us. I've already got the SafetyTats packed!
We just told Austin and Savannah that we're leaving in the morning. We told all the other kids that we're not going until Monday. (We didn't want them staying awake all night, excited about leaving in the morning.)
Hopefully this trip will not include any ambulance rides or trips to hospitals.
I was nominated for 4 Blogger's Choice Awards. This is the outcome....
Best Parenting Blog 1st place Best Humor Blog 2nd place
Hottest Mommy Blogger 4th place
Best Blog of All Time 6th place
You love me, you really love me! :::sniff sniff:::
I want to thank the academy. And thank you to my wonderful, loyal readers! I couldn't have done it without you. Thank you to everyone who took the time to vote! It means a lot to me!
What are you going to do now, Dawn?
I'm going to Disney World! (Well, after I finish packing for 8 people...)
I'm writing updates on my trip to L.A. over on my review blog HERE. Be sure to check it out.
Hi dawn i have another SSO question: this is hypathetical but what if one of your childern was disabled in some way, like say one of you kids has a sight impairment. How would you balance the time specail treatment, medical bills etc with the cost of having other kids? I have 3 kids and my oldest is blind, I having such are hard time making sure that my other kids are cared for while I care for her. What would yo do? I don't do hypothetical questions or I would hypothetically hire a wonderful nanny to help me out or I'd come up with a hypothetical cure for his ailment. It's always hard trying to evenly spread your time so that all your children feel loved and cared for. I think we all struggle with that. We can only do our best though. That said, another reader suggested this: miriamp said... For the first commenter -- have you hooked up with National Federation of the Blind (nfb.org) and/or Parents of Blind Children (a division of NFB: http://www.nfb.org/nfb/Parents_and_Teachers.asp )?
OK I have four kids and I'm a little bit of a germophobe. I wash underwear separately in a hot water wash because I fear that poopy germs will get transferred between kids if I wash them with other clothes or a cold water wash with my nursing bras. Yuck!!! Is that over the top??? Do you just throw all the kids underwear in with the rest of the wash? I just need some common sense advice!!!!! I let my kids eat cereal off the floor. Do you think I care about "poopy germs"? Heck, they're lucky I wash their clothes at all especially when they take those nice, clean, folded clothes, and throw them on their floor only to pick them up and put them back in the hamper when I tell them to clean their rooms!
I never realize you have blue eyes! They're green actually. Did you know that all 6 of my kids have different colored eyes? Weird, huh?
Love the reunion pics! Were you at Emmett's? Yep, I was!
Is it bad that my DH and I both thought of Monica Lewinski first? Yes!!!
OMG that is one of the funniest things I've read in quite awhile. And I know exactly the hairball you're talking about although mine is MUCH bigger. That's all the hair you lose in a shower? Now I really am worried! No, I lose a LOT of hair. The kids used to say stuff like, "Mom, there's a squirrel in the shower drain," if I forgot to clean out the trap.Now they tell me there's a wombat there because it's so much funnier.
This is totally something I can see myself doing, and I only have 3 kids right now. I don't know how you keep everyone's schedules straight with 6 children and a husband to keep track of. Do you have an organizer you'd receommend? Of course my problem would be actually using it once I bought it. I have one of those huge desk sized calendars. It takes up the whole side of my fridge. I don't personally like organizers that give each person their own column. I have a hard time coordinating all the columns. I have a big square for each day and I write everyone's stuff in the same square. My problem is when I forget to write something on it or when I forget to look at it before I go to bed. Of course, there are also those times that I write things down, I look at them, I know what's going on, and then I still forget! I don't think any organizer in the world can help me with that.
Atleast you got him there! Hope he had fun, where did they go anyway? A farm. It's a rule. Everyone has to have field trips to pumpkin farms in October.
I have a question for you though (maybe for SSO)... is there a way to access your older posts? I have noticed sometimes you link back to your older ones and they are always hilarious and I would love to read more. Thanks in advance! Sure, look over to the left, about halfway down, where it says, "History of Hilarity". There you can click on any month and bring up the posts for that month.
What is your reciepe for fondant?
I'll have to get back to you on this one because I don't have it with me here in CA and I don't have it memorized. Next week...
Hello Dawn...I have been following your "life" for about a year now. Thx for the laughter and fun :-) but i must say that this is the first time i have seen a picture of your husband. May I say he is a very HANDSOME man! He's all yours.
LOVE THE NEW LOOK!!! Can't wait to hear all about your trip. Are you going to try the "routine" like Monica and Ross did on the show? I'll be that would impress her. Hmmm, I don't think "impress" is quite the right word. I think if I did the routine, I might get escorted out. (But it would sure be fun until then!)
What a fabulous redesign! It's just perfect.How can you now have a great time out there, what with fielding inane questions from the kids? Eh, I'll just leave my phone off.
And, this is said with only the best intentions, your hubby is a hottie!! You can fight the other reader for him.
Holy Cow, Dawn! The blog looks AMAZING! Who designed it? I am very impressed and have love your blog forever! God bless, and keep us laughing! PulsePoint Design! But I have to warn you that they aren't taking on any new clients right now.
I love Love LOVE your new design! Is that really what your fridge looks like (because mine totally does, complete with the messy handprints!). That IS my fridge!!!
side note: wouldn't it be great to have a fridge that just kept expanding to fit everything we needed to put in/on it? :) Yes!!!
Did your book change covers today? I thought it was blue but maybe I made that up. Wow, you guys amaze me with how observant you are! Yes, my book was blue before. My publisher just emailed me and said, "Wow, we love the new site. Just one little thing...we changed the cover of your book." So, Kelli went back to the drawing board and recoded stuff and voila! Now it's orange.
I might be asking this after you have said it before.. But how did you come up with all the kids names...?? I love them all. I really love how you went with Lexington and not alexis. We got out a copy of Rand McNally
To the tune of the Mickey Mouse "M-I-C K-E-Y" song...Got a couple links on my new site that aren't work-in,P-R-O, P-A-G, A-T-I-O-NPropogation, Propogation,while becauseIsaidso dot com spreads to all of creation,P-R-O... that's right boys and girls,P-A-G... hyuh hyuh!AYTEEEYEOHENNNNNNNNNNN(clap clap clap *WOO!* clap clap)P.S. You forgot to close your [BEGIN WEB DESIGNER CODESPEAK] tag.[/BEGIN] Did you see me looking at you, straight face, one eyebrow raised, while you sang that? LOL! I'm sure the designers got a kick out of it though. :)
Oh, Dawn! I love the new design! Making it look like a fridge was brilliant (and I assume all your idea). It's so homey and fun. Not my idea at all! I was so wonderfully helpful to my design team. When asked what I wanted my site to look like, I answered, "I dunno." So Kelli asked me to go through some templates and send her ones that I liked so she could get an idea of my tastes. After sending her a couple dozen sites, she told me, "Umm Dawn? 95% of those sites were beach related. Now I know you love the beach, but your book isn't about beaches. You don't live anywhere near a beach. I don't think that's going to be the best idea for you." Then she asked me to take a picture of my fridge and send it to her. She's a genius! Those are mostly my magnets and my kids' artwork.
Hey...did the little cutout guy on the freezer door change his outfit? I could have sworn he was wearing red the first time he appeared, and now he's decked out in blue... Yes! Wow! Again, you guys are observant! When Kelli changed the book cover to orange, Flat Stanley clashed so she changed his shirt to blue.
And mostly, I want to thank all you for making me feel so much better. I'm having some serious marital issues. I don't want to get into here because my blog is just not the place for that. But know that your comments help me feel so much better! They make me laugh (go back and read the comments on my Spider post!) and sometimes they make me cry because they're so darn sweet! I just love, love, LOVE reading all your comments. You're the best bunch of cyber friends a girl could have! You guys really do make my day. For that, I thank you!!! :)
I really wanted the first post I wrote on my newly designed blog to be a good, funny one. But I'm not feeling funny today. Someone close to me has let me down again and I'm feeling stupid, fat and ugly. I'm tired. I'm tired of crying. I'm tired of being mad. I feel like I want to crawl into bed and just stay there. Do you ever have days like that? The past couple weeks, I've felt wonderful! I've felt good about myself, about life, just good. It took feeling really good, to realize just how lousy I had been feeling. I guess all good things must end though.
Anyway, I'm off to California tomorrow morning for Glamour Reel Moments styled by Suave. The timing couldn't be better. I'm really looking forward to getting away and enjoying myself for a couple days. I have 5 pairs of shoes packed and not one of them are Crocs! Impressed? Mom, Dad, if you read this, you might want to have the kids over for dinner one night. You know, to spare them from Kool-Aid fish or baking soda gravy. <---if you're a new reader, click that link and you'll know what I'm talking about.
I'll be back with the funny tomorrow, I promise. What better way is there to cope with life than humor, right? A good laugh can make pretty much anything better. :)
A couple of you have said that you were getting an error message when you tried to click the links on my website. I asked my designer about it and this is what she had to say,
"On that note, you should know [BEGIN WEB DESIGNER CODESPEAK] that the DNS for becauseIsaidso.com is still propagating across the internet, so some (a very few) people who try to access the links to your site from your blog will receive an error message until the propagation is complete."
In other words, everything is fine and dandy. Just be patient and soon all the links will work for you. :)
OK, I decided to give this Thursday Thirteen thing a try because I couldn't think of anything to write wanted to give my readers some fun variety tonight.
In no particular order, here are 13 things I need to pack before heading off to Suave's Glamour Reel Moments in L.A.
13. My camera (duh!) so I can get lots of candid pictures of my best friend Monica (that's Courteney Cox to you folks.)
12. Bail money for when I'm thrown in the slammer for stalking my bff Monica.
11. My stupid black dress that probably won't even fit when I pick it up from the seamstress tomorrow.
10. My laptop so I can write electrifyingly riveting updates about my trip.
9. Some high heeled shoes so people won't think I'm only 12 years old.
8. Some BandAids to put on the blisters that the high heels will give me.
7. Airborne. I'm sure it doesn't work, but it makes you feel a little better thinking that just maybe you could ward off the germs that the guy with Ebola spews all over while having a coughing fit on the plane.
6. A book written by someone other than Dr. Seuss.
5. My Epi-pen just in case a bee decides to sting me while I'm at the premiere. Hmmm, I wonder how many problems I'll have taking that on the plane?
4. Earplugs to drown out Joe's snoring...oh wait...that's right! I'm going by myself! I get the whole bed to myself with NO snoring! Woo Hoo!
3. My cell phone so the kids can call me up in California to ask stuff like, "Can Allison come over to play?" and "Mom, can I go to the movies with Max?" and "Mom, I can't find my shoes. Do you know where they are?"
2. Four times the amount of clothes I need so I can try on several outfits each day and stress about what to wear.
1. A bunch of other useless stuff I'll never need while making sure at the same time to forget something essential like underwear.
Remember to check out my review blog for a fun giveaway from (oops) wine! And check back tomorrow to see my brand spankin' new blog design!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My blog is getting a "red carpet" make-over! AND... my new website is launching TOMORROW!!! It is SO awesome if I do say so myself and I can't wait for everyone to see it! And my web design team (who are all amazing, amazing people!) have worked it so that you won't have to do anything differently. My blog will come up the same as it always has for you, only it'll have a brand new look!
So make sure you check back here tomorrow afternoon to see the changes!
*****Edited to add - go check out my review blog for another fun giveaway*****
Clay, Brooklyn and I had a lazy morning. The kids played and watched tv while I did laundry, cleaned up the kitchen, watched Diego the landscaper on tv, and generally procrastinated doing any real writing. When it was time to take Clay to preschool, I told the kids to go brush their teeth and get their shoes on. They disappeared into the bathroom for a few minutes so they could brush their teeth, then they came out and I helped them get their shoes on. Into the car we went. I pulled up at the preschool, got the kids out and started walking in. When we got up to the sidewalk, Brooklyn wrenched her hand free (I force them to hold my hand in the parking lot because I'm just mean that way.) and ran ahead of me.
That's when I finally saw it. The back of her head was green and blue. Her hair had been painted GREEN and BLUE and I hadn't even noticed it! Apparently when they went to brush their teeth, Clay decided to grab out the colored hair spray we have from bygone Halloweens (you know, the hairspray that's on the top shelf in the closet) and give Brooklyn a make-over.
Excellent. My 2 year old has a punk 'do.
"Clayton! Why did you put that in Brooklyn's hair?" I demanded of him as we waited for the teachers to open the doors and let us down the hall to his classroom.
"She wanted to be pretty," he answered like it was obvious. Clearly I was simple-minded to ask him such a ridiculous question.
"Clay, leave that stuff alone. You are not allowed to use it unless you ask me first. Understand?"
"OK, Mom," he agreed.
We sat there waiting for the doors to open a few more minutes. That's strange, I thought to myself. Are we really that early? Where is everyone else? Did I mess up on the time? Maybe we're really late. No, I'm pretty sure we're not late. Oh no! It must be Thursday! He doesn't have school today! Ugh. I got up and peeked into the office. My friend Val was there so I asked her, "Today's Wednesday, isn't it?"
"Yes," she confirmed.
I glanced at the clock. 1:05. Ugh, we're late now. "That's so strange. We were out there for at least 5 minutes. I didn't see any other parents. Very weird."
She told me to go on in so we rushed down the hallway to Clay's class. When we got there, we discovered that no one was in his class. The lights were all off. It IS Wednesday, isn't it? I was so confused.
"Hmmm, I don't know, Buddy. Maybe they're at gym already?" I suggested to Clay.
We started to walk towards the gym when I remembered that they had a field trip today! I was supposed to drop him off at a different location for their trip! Duh! DUH! DUH! What kind of mom forgets their child's very first field trip??? He even reminded me yesterday afternoon! Seriously, I worry about my lack of brain function sometimes.
We quickly rushed down the hall and out to the car - me, Clay, and my teal haired baby.
Thankfully, the field trip location wasn't far from the school so I was able to get him there only 20 minutes late. I don't think he cared that he was late anyway because he was too busy asking me, "This is where we're going??? I thought we were going to the zoo!"
"Nope. That'll probably be the next field trip I forget though."
I knocked a good 5 years off my life today. I was in the shower just enjoying a few moments to myself; trying to quickly wash my hair before my kids began banging on the door to tell me something important like, "Mom, Clay called me an ogre!" Suddenly I had this creepy crawly feeling on my shoulder. I rinsed the bubbles from my eyes and glanced over my shoulder. Eeeeeeeee!!! A spider! A SPIDER!!! A freaking SPIDER was on my arm!
I moved in a way that no human body should be capable of moving and ended up banging into the shower door which swung open. I flew out the door and landed in a contorted heap on the floor. The fact that I'd probably broken half a dozen bones didn't even cross my mind. Being a complete and total dork completely rational person, I just wanted to make sure the spider was off me! It was still there! But wait...wait a minute...that's not a spider. That's not a spider at all! It's... Yep, that's right. It's amazing I'm not bald with all the hair I lose in the shower. So, here I am, a grown woman, freaking out because I have a few strands of hair on my arm. Sounds reasonable and well-adjusted to me.
And, to top it off, my kids all wondered what the heck I was screaming about. I tried to think fast and come up with a good lie an explanation as to why I was screaming.
"Umm, there was a bee. Yep, that's it! There was a bee in the shower and since I didn't have my Epi-pen handy, I freaked out a little. You know, because of the bee. And me being allergic to bees and all. You understand, right?"
They gave me blank stares and said dubiously, "There was a bee in the shower, huh?"
I went to my 20 year reunion last night and I'm so glad I did! It was really fun seeing everyone after 20 years. And, of course, it was a night out without Joe and kids! Joe stayed home because he didn't know anyone, he's not really a social kinda guy, and this way we didn't have to try and find a sitter. I really would have liked to have seen a lot more people there. We had 600-some kids in our class and just over 100 showed up. I found it strange that most of the people I remembered weren't from high school at all, but grade school. The people that were the most fun to see were ones I've known since kindergarten. I made a little slide show with the pics I took last night. I'm so mad that I didn't take more photographs; I just kept forgetting about my camera. I had to pull out some old class pictures to compare - what a hoot that was! (Sorry guys, I just had to do it!) Anyway, to any Vikings reading my blog, here are the few pictures I took last night. To all my non-Fremd readers, feel free to view the slide show or not. :)
The reunion ended at 11:00, but most people stayed until the place closed at 1:00. From there, several went on to another bar that stayed open later. I'm too old for that. I left with some friends (Thanks Brian for being the designated driver! You're very sweet!) and went to Steak and Shake for a bite to eat.
OK, on to viewer mail....
I read through all your posts hoping, wishing, waiting for your muffin recipe from the alternative lunch post. Could you PLEASE share your recipe, it looked so good.
Sure. Here ya go:
2 c. flour 1 c. packed brown sugar 1 T. baking powder 1 t. cinnamon 1/4 t. salt 1/4 t. baking soda 1/4 t. nutmeg 1/8 t. cloves 1 c. canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling) 1/2 c. milk 2 eggs 1/3 c. shortening 1/2 c. chopped walnuts
Throw dry ingredients in a bowl and combine with electric mixer. Add wet stuff and beat on high speed for a couple minutes. Add in the nuts. Pour into greased muffin cups and bake at 350 for, hmmm, I guess I've never really timed it. Just bake them until they're done.
My favorite part of your blogs are the photos! I love the photos of Brooklyn, but what about the rest of the kids, are they camera shy? Yes! Especially Austin and Savannah. They don't like having their pictures taken and generally they don't get into stuff that triggers me to grab my camera. I haven't seen Austin smear diaper cream on his face in a long time. And Savannah doesn't generally mix soap, toothpaste, and deodorant in the bathroom sink, you know? And I try to respect the older ones' privacy. The little guys don't get a say. ;)
Hey i tried to vote for you for both best parenting and best humor but shows i voted already the last time you asked. So i guess i cant vote just wanted to let you know that i voted already. I hope you win i love ready your blog. Awww thanks! You're right, you can only vote once. Thank you to everyone who voted for me. I've slipped from the running in the Mommy Blogger category though. :( I've gotten like 200 or so votes. If the rest of you 8000 or so daily readers want to vote, it's not too late. They're announcing the winners on Oct. 16th. The links for the Blogger's Choice Awardcategories for which I've been nominated are to the right there --->
Dawn, how do you get those pics of your kids like the one with Brooklyn and the cheese? Do you keep your camera in your pocket or something? :) Doesn't everyone?
Yes it is worth it- My brother had the shots for his bee allergy , and he does not die when he gets stung by a bee anymore - he just feels sick and needs lots of shots :) He doesn't die anymore, huh? That's good to hear.
Hmmm...and Inner Monica? What exactly does that mean?Signed,Monica LOL! Just a Friends reference. I have all the episodes filed and catalogued in my brain. It's a scary place - my brain.
Normally I think allergy shots are a waste of time... but for something like bee stings (where the reactions tend to be more severe), I would consider it. Do you know what the success rate is? I was told it was about 95% effective.
I have had allergy shots....not a big deal. After a while you don't even notice when they stick you. It's not the needles I have a problem with. It's the fact that the office close to me only has office hours one afternoon a week and I'd have to take Brooklyn with me (the first several visits are 2 hours long) and I'd have to coordinate getting all my other kids home from school and taken care of while I'm there. The other office, with more convenient hours, is about 45 minutes away.
Are you the expert on bat poop? Didn't you see that tidbit in my bio? Go ahead, ask me a question about guano! Any question!
I have a question for the SSO: We do a lot of camping also. We camp in a trailer. Most of the campgrounds we have checked out (we live in CO) have a 6 person max policy. 1) Do you camp in a trailer? If so, can you tell us about it. 2) Do you have to get 2 campsites or do they allow all 8 of you on 1 campsite. Thanks! Yeah, we have a travel trailer. (I'll take pictures of it later this month.) Camping in a trailer is bad enough. There's no stinkin' way I'd camp in a tent with the family. I am not that insane yet. I've never seen a campground that wouldn't let us all stay on the same site. A lot of campgrounds around here charge extra per person over their limit of 4 or 6 or so, however. We avoid those places and go to campgrounds that have one price per family no matter how many kids you might have.
It's been a while since I took a look at my Stat Counter to see the keywords that have brought you people to my blog. I looked today. I'm sorry I did.
Photos of smurf bedroom theme Reasons why 4 year olds should never be allowed to redecorate
Woman that smell like feet Are there guys out there looking for women who smell like feet? Perhaps someone is trying to find a cure for women who smell like feet? Are there women who smell like feet? Who are they and why do they smell like feet? And most importantly, why on earth did this lead them to my blog???
Why do my legs shake when I put my weight on the ball of my foot? How much do you weigh?
I love to watch sky when it’s blue Umm thanks for letting me know?
Sick of repeating myself I’m sorry. What did you say?
When should my daughter shave her legs? When she starts looking like this…
I have to run erons Make sure to stop by Borders and pick up a dictionary while you're out.
Ripe blue barry’s Maybe you can borrow that above guy's dictionary.
indiana buro of motor vehicles licens plates Umm, yeah, that dictionary's going to get a lot of mileage.
Clear gelly substance in baby butt First, get in line to borrow the dictionary. Then, make sure you change your baby's diaper before it explodes, leaving gel particles all over his butt.
Because butt paste tastes so awesome I said so Brooklyn agrees.
Pictures of bat poop Ewww
My mother makes me wear girl clothes Hmmm, well, are you a boy or girl?
Boys who like wearing their sisters panties and skirts Well that answers that question.
Secret # 6; it?s every girls dream to have a guy call her at 3 in the morning just to say I love you Oh yeah? Well, here’s secret #7 – If you call a mom at 3 in the morning she will 1. Freak out that something bad has happened and 2. Chew you out for cutting into her precious sleep time just to tell her something stupid like “I love you”. How often do bats pee or poop Again with the bat poop?
Smacking noises eating Things that make me want to do bodily harm to Joe.
And if you left me a comment on a post over at my REVIEW BLOG, please check back to see if you won. I have a few unclaimed prizes.
I have been doing a lot of shopping this week. It's the first time in a really long time that I've bought clothing for myself. For one thing, the kids have this habit of growing out of their clothes so my clothing budget generally goes to buying stuff for them. The other reason I haven't updated my wardrobe in a long time is because I hate trying on clothes. I mean, I used to like it. If, I mean when, I lose a couple hundred pounds, I'm sure I'll like it again. It's just a little depressing now. And is it really wrong to still have jelly shoes, leg warmers, and parachute pants hanging in your closet?
Anyway, I've noticed something these past few days while shopping; something that really needs to be brought to your attention. This is a serious matter. It seems as if there are some women out there who are unaware of proper shopping etiquette. Day after day, store after store I saw women making the same mistake - bringing their husbands, boyfriends, significant others along.
Outside dressings rooms in every store, were men leaning on clothes racks, downcast, defeated. These poor souls stood there laden with packages and purses, glazed expressions on their faces. Some had furrowed brows as they mentally tallied up the receipts their wives were accumulating. Some had a sort of meditation look on their faces as if by concentrating really, really hard, they might be able to telepathically get the score of the Cubs game. Others were simply thinking, "This is so not worth it. Maybe if we were at Victoria's Secret....nah, not even that is worth all this waiting. How long does it take to find what you need?"
Ladies, ladies, ladies, WHY? Why do you drag your husbands shopping with you? To get their opinions? They don't have opinions! They don't. What, you say your husband is wonderful and he always compliments you on your clothing? I'll let you in on a little secret. He's simply been trained and knows what to say so he won't be sleeping in the dog house. He doesn't really care if you buy the raw umber, the cinnamon, or the chocolate sweater. He doesn't even know what umber is and if you mention chocolate, he'll just remember that he's hungry and tired of shopping.
Do you take them along because you think it will be a fun bonding time for you two; a time for you to talk and interact and enjoy each other's company while looking for the perfect shoes? Men don't think this is fun! Know how men shop? They realize they need underwear when the elastic breaks on their last pair which has so many holes and skidmarks, it looks more like a dirty doily than underwear, so they run to the store, walk in past everything and everyone straight to the underwear section. They don't notice anything they pass; they're on a mission to get underwear. They grab a package with little attention to the brand, price, or even size and proceed to the nearest check-out. Ta Da. Done.
Men do not browse through racks. They do not hold clothes up to themselves while trying to get a feel for how it would look on them. Men do not admire mannequins (except maybe in Victoria's Secret) and wonder if they can pull off the same outfit. Men do not get excited about a BOGO sale. Men think BOGO is a clown with red hair. Do you hear me? Men do not like following their wives and girlfriends around while they shop!
Let's turn it around. Would you like to spend 4 hours in Home Depot while checking out plumbing equipment? Comparing horsepower on riding mowers? Drooling over cordless power tools? Of course you wouldn't! Stop torturing your men!
And really, dragging them along can't be enjoyable for you, can it? Do you like hearing, "Are you almost done?" repeatedly while they stare at their watches? Do you notice their spaced-out gazes as you ask them questions? They don't understand the thrill of finding the perfect shoes that were originally $120.oo and are now marked down to $75.00. You look at it like you just saved $45.00! Score! Your husband looks at it like you just spent $75.00 on shoes when you already have like 400 pairs in your closet. Yes, yes, I know they can be helpful holding your packages. This is true. But a good stroller does the same thing and strollers don't whine that they're missing the game.
I propose you bring your girlfriends with you. Or if you want a brutally honest opinion, bring your mother. Or mother-in-law! Heck, you don't really need to bring anyone with you, actually. Just step out of the dressing room and walk to the three-paneled mirrors in your dress. I guarantee if you ask another woman, "What do you think?" she will come up to you and exclaim, "Oooo I LOVE that! Are you going to a wedding? That looks wonderful on you! Oh, you should get it honey!" Can you imagine a man doing that? If a man walked out of the dressing room sporting a new pair of jeans and asked a perfect stranger, "Do these make my butt look big?" the other men would look at him as if he'd just sprouted another head as they slowly back away. Because men don't care what they look like. As long as their shirt passes the sniff test, they're good to go.
So please, for the love of all things on sale, do not continue to torture your husbands this way!
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