Someone slashed my upholstered chair in two places. I"m pretty pissed off.......................
to be continued.
Saturday, May 31, 2008
Friday, May 30, 2008
Tailbone, a Garden, and Haiti
A little over a month ago, I started Bowen Therapy (clickable). Initially I went in because my face has been twitching on the left side, my neck hurts (from an old car accident) and the pain in my Congenital Hip (clickable) has radiated down thru my butt, and up into my shoulder. So I felt some medical help was in order. I've done PT for years for the hip, and not had it get worse like this before. So I thought I'd try something new.
And, ta da. I love it. In addition to the above issues, the therapist discovered I broke my tailbone at some point, seeing as it's drug way off to the left. That is actually giving me the pain below my hip (sorts of a sciatic feeling).
How could I not know when I broke my tailbone? I wondered for weeks how this happened. I had severe complications with my third childbirth, so the therapist assumed it happened then. Yesterday I remembered taking a huge spill on the wet garage floor in 2003. It hurt for months. I thought it was just bruised........
That must have been when I broke it. I'm just used to sucking it up over injuries, and never even went to the doctor. Probably would have helped to see the PCP.
Bowen Therapy feels like a cross between gentle massage & chiropractic treatment. A session can run from an hour to two hours. They work on you a little, then you rest quite a while. And you go round and round like that.
I don't want to give up in defeat in trying to run. Running is so great for my keeping my depression at bay, and I like burning a large amount of calories in a short amount of time. I do not aspire to be a long distance runner. I would however like to run 20-30 minutes. Really if I could run 20 minutes, I'd be thrilled. Currently I'm up to running 13 minutes during a 40+ minute walk/run workout.
So, I'm not sure where I go with the tail bone thing. It broke & healed incorrectly. I have no idea what you do with that other than to change positions when my rear end is sore? We're dealing with alot of issues, and some of them affect others. So hopefully in the long run, it will all be much better.
And for the Garden. This year, early in May, I put in my first garden. Fruits and veggies. A 1050 sq ft garden. 30 ft x 35 ft. WOW! I'll eventually get around to posting pictures. Here's what's in it:
Row 1: raspberries & loganberries
Row 2: blueberries & marionberries
Row 3: watermelon, cantaloupe, and rhubarb
Row 4: cucumbers, large pumpkins, & zucchini
Row 5: leaf lettuce, spinach mustard, sugar pumpkins (for baked goods)
Row 6: bon lettuce, carrots, gourds
Row 7: beans (ground growing)
Row 8: strawberries (& they already have fruit!)
The next week, I wanted to add more, but was out of space. We only rototilled the 30 x 35 ft section. So I decided to add another row between rows 1 & 2. The berries have about 10-12 feet between rows, so for 2-3 years I can plant between them, as the berries are short for now.
So in what I call Row 1a I have planted tomatoes, peppers, and green onions. On the side of our house I ripped out a climbing rose bush, and added two kiwi plants (15' ones)
Today it's been three weeks. So I'm off to fertilize and thin out some plants. I have found some really great gardening books thru the library. A couple of them I like so much that I'm going to buy them used thru Amazon.
The only thing I don't like about gardening is the fact that the deer eat my rose bushes. I have tried everything known to man at this point. Human hair, soap, chemicals. Nothing works. Apparently the deer are hungry. So I've taken down a few rose bushes, and kept just the four right next to our house. The deer are afraid to be so bold as to eat off the house. Roses are my favorite (they are even in my blog header), so I decided roses will just have to be fenced. We have a fenced patio that runs the length of our home. Next year I'm starting a deck rose garden, seeing as that's the only way I'll get to enjoy it. I've seen miniature roses. Now I'm wondering if there are tree roses/shrubs that the retailers sell around here. That will be perfect for the patio next year.
Onto the Haiti topic. My husband and I discussed this trip before I signed up. After I signed up I asked him how he felt about it. He said "just don't pick up some highly unusual tropical third world virus that will take looking up someone like Dr. House at Princeton to get you well." Always has a sense of humor, eh?
And, ta da. I love it. In addition to the above issues, the therapist discovered I broke my tailbone at some point, seeing as it's drug way off to the left. That is actually giving me the pain below my hip (sorts of a sciatic feeling).
How could I not know when I broke my tailbone? I wondered for weeks how this happened. I had severe complications with my third childbirth, so the therapist assumed it happened then. Yesterday I remembered taking a huge spill on the wet garage floor in 2003. It hurt for months. I thought it was just bruised........
That must have been when I broke it. I'm just used to sucking it up over injuries, and never even went to the doctor. Probably would have helped to see the PCP.
Bowen Therapy feels like a cross between gentle massage & chiropractic treatment. A session can run from an hour to two hours. They work on you a little, then you rest quite a while. And you go round and round like that.
I don't want to give up in defeat in trying to run. Running is so great for my keeping my depression at bay, and I like burning a large amount of calories in a short amount of time. I do not aspire to be a long distance runner. I would however like to run 20-30 minutes. Really if I could run 20 minutes, I'd be thrilled. Currently I'm up to running 13 minutes during a 40+ minute walk/run workout.
So, I'm not sure where I go with the tail bone thing. It broke & healed incorrectly. I have no idea what you do with that other than to change positions when my rear end is sore? We're dealing with alot of issues, and some of them affect others. So hopefully in the long run, it will all be much better.
And for the Garden. This year, early in May, I put in my first garden. Fruits and veggies. A 1050 sq ft garden. 30 ft x 35 ft. WOW! I'll eventually get around to posting pictures. Here's what's in it:
Row 1: raspberries & loganberries
Row 2: blueberries & marionberries
Row 3: watermelon, cantaloupe, and rhubarb
Row 4: cucumbers, large pumpkins, & zucchini
Row 5: leaf lettuce, spinach mustard, sugar pumpkins (for baked goods)
Row 6: bon lettuce, carrots, gourds
Row 7: beans (ground growing)
Row 8: strawberries (& they already have fruit!)
The next week, I wanted to add more, but was out of space. We only rototilled the 30 x 35 ft section. So I decided to add another row between rows 1 & 2. The berries have about 10-12 feet between rows, so for 2-3 years I can plant between them, as the berries are short for now.
So in what I call Row 1a I have planted tomatoes, peppers, and green onions. On the side of our house I ripped out a climbing rose bush, and added two kiwi plants (15' ones)
Today it's been three weeks. So I'm off to fertilize and thin out some plants. I have found some really great gardening books thru the library. A couple of them I like so much that I'm going to buy them used thru Amazon.
The only thing I don't like about gardening is the fact that the deer eat my rose bushes. I have tried everything known to man at this point. Human hair, soap, chemicals. Nothing works. Apparently the deer are hungry. So I've taken down a few rose bushes, and kept just the four right next to our house. The deer are afraid to be so bold as to eat off the house. Roses are my favorite (they are even in my blog header), so I decided roses will just have to be fenced. We have a fenced patio that runs the length of our home. Next year I'm starting a deck rose garden, seeing as that's the only way I'll get to enjoy it. I've seen miniature roses. Now I'm wondering if there are tree roses/shrubs that the retailers sell around here. That will be perfect for the patio next year.
Onto the Haiti topic. My husband and I discussed this trip before I signed up. After I signed up I asked him how he felt about it. He said "just don't pick up some highly unusual tropical third world virus that will take looking up someone like Dr. House at Princeton to get you well." Always has a sense of humor, eh?
Monday, May 26, 2008
Claiming Your Child
This (clickable) is really good. It's an article about the wrong reasons to adopt.
THIS (clickable) is really good too...............................
I really appreciate this article, and agree with it whole heartedly. However, nothing is included here about the older adopted child who is a danger to self and others (amongst a myriad of severe issues). Not to mention, say it was never disclosed to the innocent, wide-eyed, loving, eager, and prayerful adoptive parents that said child is a daily danger to self and others? How about the other siblings in the picture? What about their safety?
Our agency for our domestic adoption talked about Claiming Your Child quite a bit when we would discuss Sissy's serious issues with the SW's. It seemed like a diversion tactic to me by our agency, seeing as they had no solutions for her problems (other than ordering my spouse and I to attend weekly marital counseling and individual counseling both). Our agency did not offer up or support any options for keeping our family safe while continuing with finalizing the adoption (so said child could NOT be on our insurance yet, and Medicaid would not cover what she needed, and her SW would not authorize her to even GET the care she needed, let alone pay for it). Well, yes we've claimed this child(ren), but don't know that they can live in our home without someone being killed, molested, and/or harmed severely.
Any thoughts here? I have to say I feel a tad guilty when reading articles like this, because we claimed the children we adopted. That being said, even a bio child with those issues in our home would have to be removed from the home, exploring various medical and residential placement options. We absolutely would remove a bio child like that. Yes sirree.
THIS (clickable) is really good too...............................
I really appreciate this article, and agree with it whole heartedly. However, nothing is included here about the older adopted child who is a danger to self and others (amongst a myriad of severe issues). Not to mention, say it was never disclosed to the innocent, wide-eyed, loving, eager, and prayerful adoptive parents that said child is a daily danger to self and others? How about the other siblings in the picture? What about their safety?
Our agency for our domestic adoption talked about Claiming Your Child quite a bit when we would discuss Sissy's serious issues with the SW's. It seemed like a diversion tactic to me by our agency, seeing as they had no solutions for her problems (other than ordering my spouse and I to attend weekly marital counseling and individual counseling both). Our agency did not offer up or support any options for keeping our family safe while continuing with finalizing the adoption (so said child could NOT be on our insurance yet, and Medicaid would not cover what she needed, and her SW would not authorize her to even GET the care she needed, let alone pay for it). Well, yes we've claimed this child(ren), but don't know that they can live in our home without someone being killed, molested, and/or harmed severely.
Any thoughts here? I have to say I feel a tad guilty when reading articles like this, because we claimed the children we adopted. That being said, even a bio child with those issues in our home would have to be removed from the home, exploring various medical and residential placement options. We absolutely would remove a bio child like that. Yes sirree.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Ice Cream
Well crap. Ice cream has more calories than ever. See link below:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/138230?GT1=43002
http://www.newsweek.com/id/138230?GT1=43002
He Calls Us
God calls us. He is calling me here:
This has been on my heart for years. Our church makes a mission trip there every year. I will be going in January 2009 with them, and I just signed up for it this morning after services. Our church helps care for the orphans and sick, at a hospital/dental clinic in Haiti.
God calls us to help the orphans. And I answer that call.
God is good. Just this afternoon, thru Deb's blog, I was led to THIS blog. Who knew I went there to see a joke, and found out this family lives in Haiti!
God is good. All the time.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Just Tragic
http://www.stevencurtischapman.com/
God bless their family. I can't even imagine how horrible the brother feels.............
Just tragic.
God bless their family. I can't even imagine how horrible the brother feels.............
Just tragic.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
An Open Door
Update at bottom-
And just when I thought our adoption info was zilch:
Anyone who has been reading my blogs for a couple years will remember me posting about a sibling set of four from about a year ago. There is a 6yr old girl, 4yr old boy, 3yr old girl, and 18month old girl (roughly). A friend of mine "L" was trying to adopt the girls, and was fostering to adopt. Then her SIL wrote the state and claimed L's husband J is a predator and has sexually abused children. Without investigation, the children were removed from L & J's home. The four children have been in six homes this last year, different combinations of them. The VGAL called me personally multiple times asking if we could adopt the 3 & 4yr old. We were currently in the process of accepting the referral for the girls we had, so it just wouldn't have worked out. However, I really like the VGAL, and told L to have her call me any time.
Long story short, L was contacted by the VGAL yesterday to say the three girls are being removed from yet another home. They currently are in an adoptive placement with a single 61yr old lady. That would be fine and dandy, but the 61yr old adopted twin boys several years ago and they are now 12yrs old. They both have FAS/FAE, and one of them has been physically abusing the girls. Left bruises in the shape of a hand print. So the VGAL is yanking them (thank god).
I told L we have an open door for the 6yr old. The 3&4 yr olds have some permanent problems that we do not feel equipped to deal with at this time, considering there are other children in the home. Perhaps if we had more medical info and therapy info on them we could consider having them in the home. L & J want at least the baby, if not all three girls.
A relative has stepped up saying she wants to adopt all four kids. Well, kudos to her, but she is single and has NEVER had any experience with children, let alone children with special needs. L said this relative plans to quit her job to give the children supervision, attention, love, etc. That's great and all, but I asked where the money will come in. Apparently a fiance is willing to move up the wedding date so they can be married shortly and not jeopardize this adoption situation.
I'm not holding my breath on any of it. I've learned you just never know. But again, I told L we have an open door for the 6yr old.
Please keep these children in your prayers. Frankly, I'm enjoying having the time to take care of myself these days, and our life seems to be settling in nicely. So, whether God brings any of these children into our lives or not, we are blessed.
Update:
One more item. The girls have lived in six homes this last twelve months (which I mentioned above), and the little boy has been in three homes. They have all had adoption disruptions. Very sad. Very sad indeed. However, since I've been down that road myself, I think adoption is very successful when people have alot of information and the truth about the children's past, care, needs, etc. Here are their adoption placement disruptions in the last twelve months (that I know of):
6yr old girl-3 disruptions
4yr old boy-2 disruptions
3yr old girl-4 disruptions
18month old girl-3 disruptions
......all in the last twelve months.
And just when I thought our adoption info was zilch:
Anyone who has been reading my blogs for a couple years will remember me posting about a sibling set of four from about a year ago. There is a 6yr old girl, 4yr old boy, 3yr old girl, and 18month old girl (roughly). A friend of mine "L" was trying to adopt the girls, and was fostering to adopt. Then her SIL wrote the state and claimed L's husband J is a predator and has sexually abused children. Without investigation, the children were removed from L & J's home. The four children have been in six homes this last year, different combinations of them. The VGAL called me personally multiple times asking if we could adopt the 3 & 4yr old. We were currently in the process of accepting the referral for the girls we had, so it just wouldn't have worked out. However, I really like the VGAL, and told L to have her call me any time.
Long story short, L was contacted by the VGAL yesterday to say the three girls are being removed from yet another home. They currently are in an adoptive placement with a single 61yr old lady. That would be fine and dandy, but the 61yr old adopted twin boys several years ago and they are now 12yrs old. They both have FAS/FAE, and one of them has been physically abusing the girls. Left bruises in the shape of a hand print. So the VGAL is yanking them (thank god).
I told L we have an open door for the 6yr old. The 3&4 yr olds have some permanent problems that we do not feel equipped to deal with at this time, considering there are other children in the home. Perhaps if we had more medical info and therapy info on them we could consider having them in the home. L & J want at least the baby, if not all three girls.
A relative has stepped up saying she wants to adopt all four kids. Well, kudos to her, but she is single and has NEVER had any experience with children, let alone children with special needs. L said this relative plans to quit her job to give the children supervision, attention, love, etc. That's great and all, but I asked where the money will come in. Apparently a fiance is willing to move up the wedding date so they can be married shortly and not jeopardize this adoption situation.
I'm not holding my breath on any of it. I've learned you just never know. But again, I told L we have an open door for the 6yr old.
Please keep these children in your prayers. Frankly, I'm enjoying having the time to take care of myself these days, and our life seems to be settling in nicely. So, whether God brings any of these children into our lives or not, we are blessed.
Update:
One more item. The girls have lived in six homes this last twelve months (which I mentioned above), and the little boy has been in three homes. They have all had adoption disruptions. Very sad. Very sad indeed. However, since I've been down that road myself, I think adoption is very successful when people have alot of information and the truth about the children's past, care, needs, etc. Here are their adoption placement disruptions in the last twelve months (that I know of):
6yr old girl-3 disruptions
4yr old boy-2 disruptions
3yr old girl-4 disruptions
18month old girl-3 disruptions
......all in the last twelve months.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Product Review and Comment by my Kid
I would like to highly recommend Crocs. I bought a pair of Crocs Mary Janes at Disney. They seriously saved my feet. At Disney World, they have these in Women's sizes, so I acquired a pale pink pair with hot pink straps. COMFY!!
Also I would like to highly recommend Revlon Color Stay Active foundation. Stays on all day, waterproof, and has sunscreen. Can't beat that! My face burns easily, yet did not on this trip. WooHoo!!
Last but not least, I got sick of my highlights in my hair. I do not want to pay $75+ to keep them up. I colored my hair with Loreal Color Spa. Thank you Lauri for the recommendation. I love this product!! My hair is silky soft, and the color is great. I tried to match my dark brown hair with one of their two dark brown colors. A DEAD match. Couldn't have been better. Since it washes out in less than a month, I'm going to go a shade lighter next time, and a shade lighter than that the time after that. Play around a little. My hair naturally gets lighter in the summer, so I thought this would be a good time to experiment. And if I don't like it? No problem, color gone in less than a month.
Onto my kid. My youngest child saw me making a latte. He asked "why are you putting WINE in your coffee?"
Ah, son, that would be sugar-free syrup flavoring.
Bleack. Wine in coffee? That will be a pretty sad day if I'm putting wine in coffee. What would that be called? Winoffee? Maybe I would fit in HERE.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Adoption Update
First I have a small update on the girls we disrupted. I know they are not receiving medical care, seeing as their state medical insurance coverage info still comes to me. Sad. So, they are in an adoptive home (allegedly), yet these folks don't bother to take them for well child checkups (they both just had a birthday), no counseling, no testing? God help them all. I really do not think any employer covers family insurance on foster kids. So I truly think the girls are with inept people not meeting their needs.
OK, on to more positive news. My husband and I are still open to adoption. We are happy with our family the way it is, live a positive, healthy, full life. Yet at the same time, our hearts break for orphans. God also calls us to care for the orphans. We have always felt called to this ministry and these children. Our pastor preaches regularly on adoption. He has adopted three children from Kras, Russia. So, thru that we realize that there are several ways to help orphans. We want God's plan, and seek his will.
We would love additional children here, yet literally don't know how to accomplish that at the moment. I would prefer IA, and we loved our Russian adoption adventures (minus our corrupt old agency). Going to Russia to meet our little girl were some of the happiest days of our lives. Due to our agencies unethical and illegal behavior, we were not able to bring home that little girl, or any child for that matter, seeing as our agency is not accredited in Russia. We notified the Russian authorities of this, and the FBI, and there will be a trial that I am testifying at. TBA. We are currently still in litigation with our old agency, and hopefully that will end this year. But since we've been doing this for 3.5yrs now with "old" agency, I'm not holding my breath. All that to say as well, we cannot afford IA at this point, seeing as we've spent over 70K on IA (partially fees to our old agency, partially fees on our litigation).
We have absolutely no confidence or faith in the DSHS/state adoption system. I believe I've posted on that before, so I won't belabor the point.
Anyway, God knows our hearts, and knows our hearts are for adoption. If he wants us to adopt, He'll show us the way. In the meantime, we live enjoying our family full of blessings daily. We are truly grateful.
OK, on to more positive news. My husband and I are still open to adoption. We are happy with our family the way it is, live a positive, healthy, full life. Yet at the same time, our hearts break for orphans. God also calls us to care for the orphans. We have always felt called to this ministry and these children. Our pastor preaches regularly on adoption. He has adopted three children from Kras, Russia. So, thru that we realize that there are several ways to help orphans. We want God's plan, and seek his will.
We would love additional children here, yet literally don't know how to accomplish that at the moment. I would prefer IA, and we loved our Russian adoption adventures (minus our corrupt old agency). Going to Russia to meet our little girl were some of the happiest days of our lives. Due to our agencies unethical and illegal behavior, we were not able to bring home that little girl, or any child for that matter, seeing as our agency is not accredited in Russia. We notified the Russian authorities of this, and the FBI, and there will be a trial that I am testifying at. TBA. We are currently still in litigation with our old agency, and hopefully that will end this year. But since we've been doing this for 3.5yrs now with "old" agency, I'm not holding my breath. All that to say as well, we cannot afford IA at this point, seeing as we've spent over 70K on IA (partially fees to our old agency, partially fees on our litigation).
We have absolutely no confidence or faith in the DSHS/state adoption system. I believe I've posted on that before, so I won't belabor the point.
Anyway, God knows our hearts, and knows our hearts are for adoption. If he wants us to adopt, He'll show us the way. In the meantime, we live enjoying our family full of blessings daily. We are truly grateful.
Now I'm off to recover from my gardening today. I put in a 30x35 ft garden. Ouch, I'm sore.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Disney World & NASA
Disney World and NASA were great places to visit. There was so much fun to be had, and so many wonderful things to look at, I really don't know where to begin. I will say that generally speaking, Disney World exceeded our expectations. They are the epitome of Customer Service.
We thoroughly enjoyed Disney World, Animal Kingdom, EPCOT, and Hollywood Adventures. We went on a 10 day trip, and one of those days we rented a car & drove to NASA at Cape Canaveral.
I think my husband liked our hotel, the Polynesian, and the rides at the parks the best. I enjoyed all the sites and the flowers. We were there during the EPCOT flower festival. What a beauty of a time of year to go. The flowers did NOT impress my children. The kids liked the wild rides, smoothies, and ice cream the best. Actually my oldest son wants to work at NASA when he grows up, and enjoyed his time there the best. So really a worthwhile side trip.
Additionally we met up with Don & Be one evening at our hotel. We chatted for a few hours and watched the Disney fireworks, which can be seen from the beach at the hotel. Just lovely to meet them in person and lay on the beach to see the show. Somehow I forgot I was wearing the lampshade that evening (?). When the fireworks were over, I tripped on something in the sand and fell thru an Adirondack chair. How? I still haven't quite figured out. It took Don & my oldest son to pull me out of the chair for me to get out of the bars. Sheesh. And by the way, I had NOT been drinking. I just look as if I had been, sitting there in a sundress tangled in a lawn chair. Wow. We should have photographed that!
We really enjoyed the luxury of paying for an upscale version of the trip. You just can't beat the service. We dropped off our luggage at our state airport, and found it in our room in Orlando. Classy. No hassles. Our room was gorgeous, had a deck, and the housekeeping was immaculate. You also can't beat getting the monorail taking you from site to site, as you leisurely feel like riding. Just wonderful. Then there are the shuttle buses that take you around too, for free, from park to park to park. You can pick them up at your Disney Resort Hotel as well.
We prepaid for a food plan, and loved it. We got the plan where each person gets one sit-down meal, one quick meal, and one snack a day. We ate breakfast, a snack, and "linner" as we call it. Really taking the time to eat two meals a day was enough sit down time for us. Worked out well. And with the prepaid dining plan, you can use it all thru the parks, Disney Hotels, and you save 30% on the bill every meal. We enjoyed. You also save 30% in any of the "finer" stores thru the Disney Parks. Every purchase. WooHoo!!!
I really like my Disney Crocs. They are pale pink mary janes, with hot pink straps. Too cute, and they saved my feet from amputation.
The weather was perfect, Upper 80's - Low 90's. Just perfect.
We went swimming every day at our hotel. They have two pools there at the Polynesian, and they are just gorgeous.
I really can't get my mind off all the beautiful horticulture there at the Disney Parks. I saw a book on their gardening schemes, themes, and tips. I wish I'd bought it. If I ever see it again, I'm buying. This really is the most gorgeous time of year to go. The crowds were manageable as well. We went after spring break, and before it gets too hot to bear.
A few of us particularly enjoyed sleeping in!! Two days, my husband and one son who are early birds, went to the parks before 7am. If you are staying at a Disney Hotel, you can enter early and stay late (they have printed schedules of this all thru out the parks each day). The other three of us slept in, took our time, and met up with the others later. Soooooooooo nice.
We thoroughly enjoyed the parades and fireworks. That has to be my favorite part of the trip, in addition to the gardens around the grounds. We saw Fantasmic, the Disney Electric Light Parade (or whatever that's called), and each night we saw the evening fireworks show from our hotel or in the park. Just wonderful.
There's a reason it's called The Happiest Place on Earth. I'll follow up later with another post of pictures.
We thoroughly enjoyed Disney World, Animal Kingdom, EPCOT, and Hollywood Adventures. We went on a 10 day trip, and one of those days we rented a car & drove to NASA at Cape Canaveral.
I think my husband liked our hotel, the Polynesian, and the rides at the parks the best. I enjoyed all the sites and the flowers. We were there during the EPCOT flower festival. What a beauty of a time of year to go. The flowers did NOT impress my children. The kids liked the wild rides, smoothies, and ice cream the best. Actually my oldest son wants to work at NASA when he grows up, and enjoyed his time there the best. So really a worthwhile side trip.
Additionally we met up with Don & Be one evening at our hotel. We chatted for a few hours and watched the Disney fireworks, which can be seen from the beach at the hotel. Just lovely to meet them in person and lay on the beach to see the show. Somehow I forgot I was wearing the lampshade that evening (?). When the fireworks were over, I tripped on something in the sand and fell thru an Adirondack chair. How? I still haven't quite figured out. It took Don & my oldest son to pull me out of the chair for me to get out of the bars. Sheesh. And by the way, I had NOT been drinking. I just look as if I had been, sitting there in a sundress tangled in a lawn chair. Wow. We should have photographed that!
We really enjoyed the luxury of paying for an upscale version of the trip. You just can't beat the service. We dropped off our luggage at our state airport, and found it in our room in Orlando. Classy. No hassles. Our room was gorgeous, had a deck, and the housekeeping was immaculate. You also can't beat getting the monorail taking you from site to site, as you leisurely feel like riding. Just wonderful. Then there are the shuttle buses that take you around too, for free, from park to park to park. You can pick them up at your Disney Resort Hotel as well.
We prepaid for a food plan, and loved it. We got the plan where each person gets one sit-down meal, one quick meal, and one snack a day. We ate breakfast, a snack, and "linner" as we call it. Really taking the time to eat two meals a day was enough sit down time for us. Worked out well. And with the prepaid dining plan, you can use it all thru the parks, Disney Hotels, and you save 30% on the bill every meal. We enjoyed. You also save 30% in any of the "finer" stores thru the Disney Parks. Every purchase. WooHoo!!!
I really like my Disney Crocs. They are pale pink mary janes, with hot pink straps. Too cute, and they saved my feet from amputation.
The weather was perfect, Upper 80's - Low 90's. Just perfect.
We went swimming every day at our hotel. They have two pools there at the Polynesian, and they are just gorgeous.
I really can't get my mind off all the beautiful horticulture there at the Disney Parks. I saw a book on their gardening schemes, themes, and tips. I wish I'd bought it. If I ever see it again, I'm buying. This really is the most gorgeous time of year to go. The crowds were manageable as well. We went after spring break, and before it gets too hot to bear.
A few of us particularly enjoyed sleeping in!! Two days, my husband and one son who are early birds, went to the parks before 7am. If you are staying at a Disney Hotel, you can enter early and stay late (they have printed schedules of this all thru out the parks each day). The other three of us slept in, took our time, and met up with the others later. Soooooooooo nice.
We thoroughly enjoyed the parades and fireworks. That has to be my favorite part of the trip, in addition to the gardens around the grounds. We saw Fantasmic, the Disney Electric Light Parade (or whatever that's called), and each night we saw the evening fireworks show from our hotel or in the park. Just wonderful.
There's a reason it's called The Happiest Place on Earth. I'll follow up later with another post of pictures.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
Balls the Size of Church Bells
You got to love this guy... This is a true story about a recent wedding that took place at Clemson University. It was in the local newspaper and even Jay Leno mentioned it. It was a huge wedding with about 300 guests.
After the wedding, at the reception, the groom got up on stage with a microphone to talk to the crowd. He said he wanted to thank everyone for coming, many from long distances, to support them at their wedding.
Inside each manila envelope was an 8x10 glossy of his bride having sex with the best man. The groom had gotten suspicious of them weeks earlier and had hired a private detective to tail them. After just standing there, just watching the guests' reactions for a couple of minutes, he turned to the best man and said, 'F--- you!' Then he turned to his bride and said, 'F--- you!' Then he turned to the dumbfounded crowd and said, 'I'm outta here.' He had the marriage annulled first thing in the morning. While most people would have canceled the wedding immediately after finding out about the affair, this guy goes through with the charade, as if nothing were wrong. His revenge--making the bride's parents pay over $32,000 for a 300-guest wedding and reception, and best of all, trashing the bride's and best man's reputations in front of 300 friends and family members. This guy has balls the size of church bells.
Do you think we might get a MasterCard 'priceless' commercial out of this? Elegant wedding reception for 300 family members and friends: $32,000. Wedding photographs commemorating the Occasion: $3,000.Deluxe two-week honeymoon accommodations in Maui : $8,500. The look on everyone's face when they see the 8x10 glossy of the bride humping the best man: Priceless. There are some things money can't buy, for everything else there's MASTERCARD.
And coming soon, my post about Disney World. See post below from earlier today.
A trip
My husband and I realized a long time ago, that traveling with children is a trip more than a vacation. We got alot of good chuckles along the way, and thoroughly enjoyed Disney World and NASA.
During the time spent away, I thought of so many things to blog about. I feel as I am not even the same person as I was a few years ago.
With having a vacation, and a chance to read a few books, spending time with just our family, rolling with the punches, and enjoying countless laughs along the way, I realized how different our lives are now. I think getting out of the daily rut and grind gave me a chance to reflect, more so than I have in years. Maybe decades.
I have so many things to blog about:
Disney World adventures
Adoption update
Kids with Special Needs (& traveling with them)
Do's & Don't's for traveling with kids
Grief & loss
My own personal journey: my health & well being
So, I'll start next with the blog about Disney World & NASA, the trip of a lifetime. Memories made on that trip will last a lifetime.
During the time spent away, I thought of so many things to blog about. I feel as I am not even the same person as I was a few years ago.
With having a vacation, and a chance to read a few books, spending time with just our family, rolling with the punches, and enjoying countless laughs along the way, I realized how different our lives are now. I think getting out of the daily rut and grind gave me a chance to reflect, more so than I have in years. Maybe decades.
I have so many things to blog about:
Disney World adventures
Adoption update
Kids with Special Needs (& traveling with them)
Do's & Don't's for traveling with kids
Grief & loss
My own personal journey: my health & well being
So, I'll start next with the blog about Disney World & NASA, the trip of a lifetime. Memories made on that trip will last a lifetime.
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