A Little More Disney*World!

In addition to walking over 7 miles every day and absolutely wearing my feet out, we also had some lovely pool time! And, of course, Mickey joined in the fun in the sun!

Maddy really enjoyed her afternoon swimming time and practiced doing handstands in the water and attempting a back float -- she did a great job! I think she will be a very good swimmer this summer with a few more lessons. And she even went down this amazing slide (right out the clown's mouth) all by herself!

We also watched the parades, stood in line for character autographs and engaged in one of Miss M's favorite past-times - shopping!!

Bruce the shark from Nemo was whispering "Buy Me", but she opted for Nemo instead!

We were on the hunt for a Bolt dog. Get this -- there were none to be found in any of the Disney parks or Downtown Disney. But . . . the Easter Bunny brought her the Bolt movie and there was a coupon inside to order one! Geesh -- I could have saved so much time if only the Easter Bunny had left that movie in her suitcase and not at home! We did get to meet Bolt and Rhino -- they were so funny! Even Connor enjoyed meeting those two!!



The area where we stayed was so nice and restful even with crowds on the Boardwalk in the evenings. The Rickster and I used to visit the Jersey shore when he was in law school and LOVED the Boardwalk at Ocean City, NJ, so this Boardwalk brought a little of that feeling right back.

Bicycles -- just waiting for riders!

You can almost see our room and balcony just above the tree!

Looking out from the Boardwalk in the evening. The fireworks at Epcot every evening are amazing and a must-see!

It's All About Mickey!

Just returned this evening from DisneyWorl*d. We had an amazing time with super weather. It was warm and sunny and simply beautiful! The flowers were in bloom everywhere and it was so wonderful to have it be so warm. Of course, we had a bit of a rude awakening arriving home tonight! Even though it was 50 degrees, which normally would be warm, it felt very, very chilly.

Mickey and Maddy on the porch of the Boardwalk -- our hotel.




Rickster, Maddy and Connor

Seems like we were away for ages (which I believe is the sign of a good vacation), and we kept very busy! The Rickster and I had a little friendly competition on keeping track of how many steps (or miles) we walked every day. You'll be happy to know that I beat him every day and we averaged about 22,000 steps -- which I believe equals 7+ miles! That was a lot of walking!

Mickey rode the teacups with us -- he got SO dizzy!

Miss Maddy had a blast! And, as you can see from the photos, so did her pal Mickey. He went nearly everywhere with us and somehow the mouse managed to get into nearly every photo! It was fun having Connor with us too. He and the Rickster went on the scary roller coasters while Maddy and I hit the teacups! :) We missed Philip and Catherine who were unable to make the trip with us. More photos to follow as I am beat and must hit the sack as it is back to work tomorrow!

Flashback Friday -- Happy Easter!

Hooked on Disney

Spring, 2007





Spring, 2009!

Some Bunny Say it isn't True!

It's spring, right?? In true midwestern fashion, anywhere from 1 to 3 to 10-12 inches of snow has been forecast for Sunday--Palm Sunday, April 5!! OY!! Today, our local YMCA held its annual Easter Egg hunt. Even winds of 40mph did not keep the Easter Bunny or lots of kids away. But, believe me with that cold and strong wind blowing, those eggs were swooped up fasssst!!! Probably one of the only times that Maddy and I will want hot chocolate after an Easter egg hunt -- it was really chilly out! Even though we may have snow tomorrow (please say it isn't so!), we are looking at the positives. If it does snow, it should not last very long. The weather forecasters have been wrong many times when they have forecast snow during this past winter/spring season. And, we are headed to warmer temps next week to spend a little time with a very favorite Mouse of Maddy's (mine too). So while others in our fair city may be searching for their snow shovels, we're searching for flip-flops and shorts!

Spring is in the Air!

Signs of spring are popping up all over and it just really makes everything better, doesn't it! I was so thrilled the other day on the way home from work to see some trees greening up already!! The warm sunny skies just make all the stresses of work, collecting stuff for tax prep and tidying up the ever messy house simply disappear. Even though there may be snow forecast for tomorrow (!!!), Maddy and I headed to our neighborhood school yard tonight so that she could practice some of her climbing. I swear that girl is part monkey!

No fear -- the girl has no fear!



Kind of a scary-looking apparatus, isn't it?! She loves to climb it.

Those front teeth are finally starting to come in! I almost hate to see her sweet toothless smile change!

Artist in Residence

Miss Maddy has always loved to draw. Give her a piece of paper and a pencil and she draws and draws and draws -- usually pictures of her stuffed animals or scenes from a movie. Simba (from the Lion King) is always a favorite subject. In the picture above, as you can see, the hyenas [see them laughing!] are trying to get the young Simba. That's Nala behind Simba saying "a-oh" with Zazu the bird flying above. Yes, Lion King is one of her favorite movies!

We finally bought one of these two-sided easels and she LOVES it! It is the perfect size for her and so much fun to see her working on her intricate drawings. Plus -- BONUS -- if she's using the chalkboard, a friend can be using the other side's dry-erase or paper board! It's two -- two boards in one!

Wordless Wednesday