Zoo Fun

Before the summer began I tried to make a list of "must dos."  You know, all those things you just have to do when you have the time to do them.  At the top of the list was a trip to the Zoo.  We are very lucky to live within an hour drive to ours.  We also wanted to be sure to take two very special people with us... My grandparents!  We all had a great time.  Fortunately it wasn't too hot and there was lots of shade!  

Which came first, the egg or the chicken?

Well that still may be the million dollar question, but in our little corner of the world we just might be able to answer that question.  A few weeks ago we started toying with the idea of getting chickens.  An idea I thought I'd certainly never entertain.  Although I like to think of myself as a country girl, let's be honest, live farm animals aren't really my thing.

Trusting my husband I decided to go with it.  He worked super hard to make an unused building into a coop.  I have to admit, I was surprised how well it turned out.  A few days later he came home with nine chickens!  We decided to go with "pullets" or young/grown chickens.  We didn't think it was the best idea with a toddler and a puppy to get baby chicks. 

I can honestly say this new adventure has been surprisingly fun.  We are enjoying learning more about how to care for them.  Of course going to the coop and finding eggs is always fun too.  That is ER's favorite job.

Let the memories begin!

Disney World is such a special place.  Many of my favorite childhood (and adulthood too) memories were made there!  I always knew it was a place I would want to take my children.  When we decided to go on a Disney cruise I suggested we spend a couple days in the parks.  Although we knew ER was probably too young to remember anything, we were excited to have those memories with her.

Our adventure started at Art of Animation, Disney's newest hotel.  The hotel features four of Disney's most popular animated films: The Lion King, Cars, The Little Mermaid, and Finding Nemo.  We had reserved the basic room (Little Mermaid) but were super lucky and got a free upgrade to a family suite!  The room was HUGE!  It had two bathrooms, a living room (with a small kitchen), and a separate bedroom.  There were even two pull out beds!  The room was made to sleep a large family, not our little family of three, so we felt like we had won the lottery!  It felt especially big after being in our little room on the ship!  I am not sure how we lucked out on that one but we weren't complaining!

The theme of our section was "Cars.''  We stayed in "Towmaters" building.  The details again amazed me.  Our room featured cone lamps, back seat style couches, map coffee tables, and tire tread chairs.  I am truly fascinated with the creative minds behind these hotels!  

After we settled in we celebrated Father's Day at Animal Kingdom.  We enjoyed a safari ride, lunch, Finding Nemo the Musical, a parade, and a carnival style Dino ride.  While ER napped I saved our parade spot and Preston enjoyed some man time at a restaurant watching the UNC/State baseball game.  He also enjoyed Expedition Everest (a roller coaster) which he LOVED.  To end our day we had dinner at Rainforest Cafe.  Ella Ruth loved it, especially when the animals came to "life."  

Day two and three we headed to the most magical place on Earth, Magic Kingdom.  The park was a  bit crowded but not to where we had to wait forever to ride anything.  In fact, the entire trip we only waiting in line for two rides!  Thankfully getting to the park early and the amazing invention of Fast Pass helped us out!  Ella Ruth rode the tea cups and Dumbo first.  She loved them and asked if she could keep riding.  We headed over to It's a Small World next and then road Peter Pan's Flight.  We even attempted the Haunted Mansion.  ER covered her eyes the entire time.  Parent's of the year right here!  After a ride on the train our last ride of the morning was in the New Fantasy land at Ariel's Grato (Under the Sea).  Again, super special memories!  After lunch we attempted the parade but a serious storm came through and cancelled it for the day.  After that we visited the Country Bear Jamboree, had an early dinner at Tony's Italian Restaurant (from Lady and the Tramp) and called it a day.  We spent the rest of the evening in the pool which was a welcomed treat after the hot Florida sun cooked us all day!  

Day three started with breakfast at Crystal Palace and a character greet with Pooh and the gang.  Ella Ruth wasn't so sure about it at first but quickly warmed up to everyone!  After breakfast Mommy and Daddy took a spin on Space Mountain (our personal favorite ride).  We then went on The Jungle Cruise and grab fast passes for another of our favorites, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.  Can you tell the adults wanted to have some fun too?  By this point in the afternoon it felt like it was 1,000 degrees (we just thought NC was hot) and we had early dinner plans so we headed back to the hotel for us to ALL take naps.  

After nap time we headed back to visit the Polynesian Resort's Luau.  I had picked the restaurant as a surprise for Preston.  On our honeymoon we joked that for our fifth wedding anniversary we would go to Hawaii.  As you can see, we didn't make it there so I had to improvise.  It was probably my most favorite dinner we had!  The entertainment was really cool and the food was yummy too.  I have already tried to find a recipe to recreate the desert (pineapple bread pudding).  It was, as Preston would say, the bomb dot com!  

On our last day our flight wasn't until 7 so we decided to make the most of our time and we headed out to one last park, Disney's Hollywood Studios.  Back in the day we knew it as MGM.  We didn't have much time but we were able to enjoy a few rides and a yummy lunch at the 50's Prime Time Cafe.  Again, I am a sucker for themes (think black and white TVs playing old clips) so this is another one of my favorites.  I loved it even more when our waitress told Preston to keep his elbows off the table!  

Of course we had to meet one last character (Jake from Disney Junior) before we left.  We all had an amazing trip.  Although we were exhausted from all the fun we made a million memories and I will treasure them all for the rest of my life!  I feel so lucky to have had this experience and cannot wait to go back to experience it all again!  As Mickey Mouse says, "see ya real soon" Disney World!  The Parks will be back!  

When you wish upon a star...

Growing up going to Disney World on family vacations was a highlight of my childhood.  Seriously, my favorite memories involve the big mouse!  When I found out we were expecting our first child one of the first things I thought of was "I can't wait to take them to Disney!"  After ER was born I started asking Preston when we should take her.  He finally gave in when I asked to plan a trip to celebrate our 5th anniversary and my graduate school graduation.  We decided on a Disney Cruise partnered with what else... a trip to Disney World!  In my book it sounded like the perfect trip!

Last week went began our adventure!  Ella Ruth rocked the flight and we made it on the ship by lunch time!  From the start we were treated like royalty!  They even cheered for us as we boarded the ship.  Of course it didn't hurt that ER was called "Princess" the entire trip!

Another favorite of my family's were cruises!  I love that everything is taken care of and you can just relax and enjoy the scenery.  I have only been on Carnival cruises so I was really excited to try out Disney.  I had heard they were the best and they were!  The ship was BEAUTIFUL and super CLEAN (a big plus for this germaphobe mama).  The service was superb and the food was amazing!

Taking a break from the Florida sun!

One of the highlights was the dinning experience.  Disney has what they call their "famous rotational service."  Each night we visited a new restaurant with a neat theme and menu.  We visited Enchanted Garden, Royal Palace, and Animator's Palette (our favorite).  The best part was that our servers stayed with us!  Ella Ruth adored Helsinki and Bruno.  They had her favorite drink waiting each night (with her name on the cup) and even let her pick two dinners (pizza and pasta) one night because she couldn't decide!  Each dinning room had lots of hidden Disney charm.  For example, in Royal Palace the chandelier featured Cinderella slippers and the bread basket was shaped like a carriage!  At Animator's palate even our butter knives were shaped like paint brushes!  It really is the little things!  

Another highlight included all the character greetings!  ER loved meeting all the characters and this saved us lots of time once we made to Disney too!  She met Cinderella, Snow White, Tinker Bell, and Minnie.  We saw all of the characters at one point or another but those are the ones we got one on one time with.  I was super impressed with how much time they took with each child.  The "face characters" like the princesses asked ER her name, taught her how to twirl, complimented her outfits, and gave lots of hugs.  It was really special for her and a memory I will treasure forever!  It was magical watching her excitement!  

On our second night they had "Pirates IN the Caribbean" night.  They gave us bandanas to wear and our servers got in the spirit too!  After dinner they had a big party on the deck complete with FIREWORKS (the only AT sea), Jack Sparrow, and "club pirate" (AKA a kid friendly dance party).  We had a blast and although ER wasn't the biggest fan of the fireworks, she had a ball dancing the night away!  Again, another priceless family memory I will never forget!  She may have even been allowed to stay up WAY past her bed time too!  

Our last day on the ship included a trip to Castaway Cay (pronounced "key").  It is Disney's private island in the Bahamas.  The location was just gorgeous and of course all the details were there.  The family beach was awesome and perfect for little kids.  No waves = happy mama!  Ella Ruth had a blast swimming and playing the sand.  Daddy had fun on the water slides too!  Lunch was provided on the island so we didn't even have to worry about food!  

I really couldn't say enough about our experience on our Disney cruise.  We had the best time and can't wait to go on another!  Maybe I should start playing the lottery!

Girls Beach Break 2013

Moving back to our home town has proved to be one of the best decisions we have ever made.  Not only are we closer to our families, we are also closer to friends (both old and new).  Thankfully I am now able to spend more time with an awesome group of girls I have been lucky to get to know over the years. 

Last year I was invited to join in one of their favorite traditions, an annual all girls (no babies, no husbands/boyfriends) trip.  This past weekend we went down again and had a ball!  Between the yummy meals, fun fellowship, and beautiful weather we had a great time!