Back To Reality

I can definitely tell that I am not in the Magical World Of Disney............
No fairy tales or Pixie Dust anywhere to be found.

It seems all there is around here is STRESS!!!!!!
Stress at home, stress at work....UGHHHHHH!!

While I was in Disney World my stomach and intestines were fine. I pretty much was able to eat what I wanted to, with only minor problems. I didn't go overboard with the spicy or fried foods, but I did eat french fries, hotdogs, chinese food, and ICECREAM. I love icecream and usually it does a number on my tummy. Every now and then I can sneak a bowl in without any problem, but usually dairy products kill me.

Anyway, as soon as I got back, reality and STRESS..........

It started with the phone. I am constantly telling Lindsey that she is on the phone too much. I know that she is a pre-teen girl and that is what they do, but I think the phone is permanently attached to her ear. I received my phone bill the other day and I knew that is was going to be higher than usual, because of Adam's trip to Mexico, but I sure never dreamed that it would be $728.00. Some of my rollover minutes expired and we used up all of the ones that I had left. The Mexico calls were high, but there were some charges that were really high (like one $45.00 charge for data transfer) and then all the text messages that my kids think they have to send. Add in all the overages that they charged us for the calls over our plan minutes and you have a $728.00 phone bill. My daughter alone talked 4,000 minutes. I love to talk, but 4,000 minutes a month..........I don't have that much to say.

At work, things are always behind when you come back from a vacation. I have spent the last week getting things caught up and now we are getting ready for inventory on May 7. Inventory is a task in itself. I have been pre-counting the jewelry in my department, which means, once it is counted if you sell anything or receive any new items that the counts have to be changed. So it takes longer to do the everyday things. Plus it's my job to keep a check of the counts, because the night time people don't always change the counts like they are supposed to.

Then we have my son, who over draws his checking account and comes to Mom for help. Nevermind that his rent is due in 2 days (which I pay). So I sent him to his Dad. Dad needs to help too, afterall, which he did. But then a day later I come home to find my son here at 5 pm when he should have been at work until at least 6pm. So I ask, "How come you are here so early?" He says,"You probably don't want to know." So I am thinking that he got fired. No..... he quit. He has two jobs thank goodness and has applied, interviewed and taken a drug test for a summer job at the Corvette Plant. I sure hope that he gets that one.

He got to work (his afterschool job) and they told him that they needed him to go to one of the other schools and that he may have to work there until the end of the school year. He has been there for quite sometime and felt like someone else should have to go instead, but they told him that it had to be him. So he quit. He didn't stop to think that they just might want to send him there because he has the most experience and that the others at that school are new employees.

Of course we can't leave out 2 sources of stress in my life. Michael and his son...........

They can be two of the most spoiled people on the face of the earth. The two of them have been so used to getting their way that it can really be a challenge to deal with them at times.

Am I ready to go back to Disney World or any other place far far away...........YES!!!!!!!!

Take me away.......

Our Disney World Vacation

Thought I would share a bit about our trip.

We arrived at the airport around 5am and began the check in process. Lindsey had no problem, she had her boarding pass in about 2 minutes. It took a little longer for me. It seems that my name is on the "Watch List" so my information and ID had to be checked more throughly. I could not be checked in curb side, I had to be escorted inside to a counter to be checked in. After about 20 minutes or so I had my boarding pass and we were on our way through the security check point and on to our departure gate.
Our flight took of on time. It was a thrilling experience. We had some turbulence, but I guess that is normal. Our seats were not assigned, but Lindsey and I were able to sit together. We even managed to get a window seat on the flight to Orlando. That was really cool, looking out as we were flying. I especially liked flying through the layers of clouds. At one point on the return flight I saw another plane flying by......that was really neat.

A couple of things I didn't like about flying was the fact that it hurt Lindsey's ears, especially when the plane begins descending, and the having to maneuver through the airports. Nashville airport wasn't bad at all, but Orlando was a bit more difficult. We arrived in one building and had to make our way to the Disney Welcome Center, which was in another building. So we had to take the tram to the main building and then go down three levels and follow the trail of people there with the big Mickey Mouse hands waving you in the direction that you need to go. Not that we had any trouble doing it, but it just makes me nervous. I was so afraid of not being where we needed to be at the right time. But we did fine........

Our plane arrived around 8:30 am and by 11:20 we were checked in to our hotel and inside Animal Kingdom.

The weather did not cooperate fully with us, it was cold. Thank goodness we had worn jackets. It was in the upper 50's with slight rain our first day. I thought Florida was supposed to be warm and sunny. LOL.......

We managed to be inside most of the time that it was raining, either on a ride or watching a show.

On Tues. it was a bit warmer, in the lower 60's, but cloudy. We went into the park early. Magic Kingdom opened for resort guests at 7:00 am. The crowds were much lighter and we got to do alot of things before the park opened to the general public. We did what we wanted to do there and then hopped over to Epcot for awhile. It started to rain quite a bit and we were tired from being up so early for two straight days, so we went back to our resort for awhile.

We rested a couple of hours and then it was on to Downtown Disney for dinner and shopping.

Mousesavers.com rated The Earl Of Sandwich a good place to eat for a decent price and I'll have to agree. We liked it alot. It wasn't crowed like alot of the other places and it was really good. They have hot sandwiches and the bread they

are served on is awesome!!

Wednesday was cloudy, but much warmer with temps in the lower 70's. We returned to Epcot to do all the things that we didn't get a chance to do the day before. Because I am a Disney Visa Card Member we got to have a special "Meet and Greet" with some of the Characters. That was really neat. They let you take as many pictures as you want and take time with you. Usually they kind of rush you with the characters, which I can sort of understand, because there are so many waiting and they are usually outside and you know they have to be sooooo hot inside those costumes.

We got to meet with Mickey, Minnie and Goofy.

After a full day of being at Epcot we returned to our resort to freshen up a bit and then headed to Magic Kingdom to grab a bite to eat and to steak out our spot for The Spectro Magic Parade and Wishes Fireworks Show. We had the "Perfect Spot" on the balcony of the Train Station facing the castle. It was AWESOME!!!! and we were close to the entrance of the park so that leaving and reaching the bus stop was easy. We had just arrived back at our room when some rather strong storms hit. They didn't last long, but were pretty intense with 55 mile per hour winds and some heavy rain.

Look at the crowd gathering for the parade.

Thursday was more like a typical Florida day. It was sunny and hot. The temp reached a high of 88 with a heat index of 92. MGM was our park to visit on this day. Lindsey had a really good time riding the rides there. Her favorite one was the Rock 'N' Roller Coaster. She rode it twice.

She also liked the Tower Of Terror alot.

Friday was our last day in Florida and our day to just hang out at the resort before flying home. Lindsey slept in and I got us all packed up.

Next time I'll have to remember to allow room in the suitcases for soveigners.

We had a wonderful trip and I am very glad that I got the chance to do this with my daughter. It is something we will always remember!!!

Here are some random pictures from our trip.

Vacation At Last

I am finally on vacation. I will be spending the weekend getting everything packed and ready.

I am so looking forward to this vacation. I have always wanted to fly and now I will get my chance. Lindsey is excited about it too. This will be a great experience to share with her. We have been reading alot of info about flying. Trying to pack everything correctly so that it will be an easy and quick process.

The only thing I worry about is getting to the right place at the right time.

I would really hate to miss my flight. Thank goodness it is a non stop flight. That does make me feel a bit better. No lay overs or connecting flights to worry about.

I Hope that the weather is good next week. We have our little ponchos, just in case it decides to rain. Hopefully it will be sunny. Heaven knows my pale white legs could use some sun.

I really love Walt Disney World, there is so much to do. One of my favorite things is THE CASTLE. I guess I have some left over childhood dreams of being a Princess and living in a castle with my Prince Charming, having people to wait on me hand and foot, not having to work but just doing whatever I feel like doing all day.....everyday. Ahhhhhhhh..........to be a Princess.

Hey maybe they will pick Lindsey and I to spend the night there, after all it is "The Year Of A Million Dreams" and that would be really cool. Keep your fingers crossed for us.

Well gotta run, still have lots to do before we head south. Keep us in your prayers that we have a safe trip. HAPPY EASTER to all!!!!!

Talk to you soon!!