Weeklong Celebration

This Wednesday it's my birthday, so I'm celebrating by taking the whole week off work.  I hadn't used vacation time yet, so I figured I better get to it, seeing how it's already October and 9 months of the year have already passed me by.

It's October, people!  How can that be? 

Well, anyway, I'm glad it's October because it's my birthday.  We just won't talk about which birthday it is, or it will spoil the celebrating for me.  It's not the BIG one yet, but the BIG one is looming in the distance, a little too close for my comfort.

So far on my first day of vacation I have spent it washing and folding laundry and reading a book.  I did head out for an afternoon walk, though, because I thought I could use some fresh air, and I'm also trying to be proactive in fighting off those extra calories that I am sure to consume over the birthday celebration.  I've got big plans for Tuesday and Wednesday, and they do involve good food.

Have a great week.  I plan to!

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Chat Pack (It's a Vlog)

Friday?  Did I hear someone say it's Friday?  Woo...hooooo!!!!  The weekend's here!

I guess that means I'll be answering another Chat Pack question today.  I wonder what the question is? 

Better click the play button to find out.  It's only 3 minutes and 14 seconds of your life you won't get back.  And ya never know.  I might just sing a rendition of Weekend in New England, and you surely wouldn't want to miss that.

               

 

Okay... show of hands... who clicked play to see if I would sing Weekend in New England?  You can fess up in the comments below.

Have a great Friday!

  

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Caffeinated Randomness - Daydreaming

In conclusion to the "I'm Losing It!" post, it has been determined that I need a vacation.  This comes from the general consensus of 3 people... my in-real-life friend Dana, my blogging friend Ronnica, and me, of course. 

If you know me at all, you don't need to ask where I want to go.  And if you don't know me, I'll give you a hint.  The destination I daydream about looks a little like this...

           

Okay, it looks a lot like this. 

This morning while I was folding bulletins, I turned on Live365.com to listen to my Disney tunes.  A Dream Is A Wish your Heart Makes came on, you know, the theme from Cinderella?  My thoughts went back to when I was a child, walking through Cinderella Castle and looking at the mosaic of scenes from the story of Cinderella.  I remember eating in the restaurant in the castle, drinking fruit punch from the chilled goblets and thrilling over the cold pats of butter that were in the shape of Mickey Mouse's head.

I could almost smell Cinderella Castle in my memory, and it made me want to be there.  I imagined the thrill I might have if at that very moment I could be transported to that place and have my husband take a picture of me standing there in front of the mosaic.  There would surely be a look of glee on my face.

{Sigh}

Yeah, I'm ready for a vacation.

This is a pretty random daydream of mine.  If you'd like to see  the randomness of some other bloggers, check out Under Grace And Over Coffee for some caffeinated randomness.

 

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Pottery Pictures

A few weeks ago I went to the ceramics studio with my sister and painted a sugar bowl.  I think it turned out fabulous, if I do say so myself.

And as I often do, I gave this one away to a friend.

More Vacation

My vacation has been going fine.  I got over my stomach bug, so I spent much of Saturday with my mom.  My parents took me to lunch at Chili's, and then Mom took me to Coldstone Creamery later while Dad took a nap.  We even ran to a department store and found a cute jean skirt for me at a great price.

Today I spent time with my sister.  We went to a ceramics studio and painted pottery for a couple hours.  I wasn't very confident with the colors I chose for my piece until it was almost finished.  When it was completed, I loved it.  It's going to be even cooler once it's been fired.  I can't wait to see how it turns out!

After pottery we went to a nearby Mexican restaurant for lunch.  We were going to try a dessert called a banana chimichanga, but the waitress said it was huge even if we split it.  They wrap a banana in a tortilla, fry it, and put ice cream and whipped cream all over it.  Doesn't that sound fabulous?  Kathy wasn't up to it, so I ordered a small slice of cake to share with her instead. 

After I left her, I went over to visit a friend I don't get to see very often.  I spent the rest of the afternoon catching up with her.

Rich and I are now planning an overnight getaway for Thursday and Friday.  We've made the reservations and everything.  My parents are going to babysit Dixie while we're gone.  I think they can handle it.  Hopefully, Dixie can too.

And that's how things are shaping up...

Feeling Groggy

I'm feeling somewhat better today because my fever went down, but my head is groggy.  Definitely not up to par.  I managed to make myself some pancakes for breakfast from a mix.  I had a craving, so I decided to go with it.  I'm not sure what I'll be eating for lunch.  I only shopped for a couple items this week, since I was supposed to be gone.  Rich was gonna pick up food as he wanted it.  About the only thing here to eat is grilled cheese.  I'm wondering if I have the strength to drive out to grab some fast food.  It's only 5 minutes away.  I'm not sure my head could take it, though.

Rich finally put all my baggage in the other bedroom.  It had all been out in the living room yesterday, but I didn't have the strength to do anything with it.  I noticed this morning that it had been moved.

This is the longest I've been sitting up in over 24 hours, but I'm feeling tired again.  I think I'm going to go nap awhile.

The Best Laid Plans

You'll never believe what has happened.  I still can't believe it myself.  I started feeling nauseous and had an upset stomach yesterday afternoon in the midst of packing.  This morning I felt horrible, so I took my temperature.  I had a fever of 99.6. 

So... my road trip to Virginia is off.  I was going to go with my friend Judy to see her daughter's family.  They just moved there a couple weeks ago.

It's less than exciting to spend your first day of vacation in bed all day long.  Bleck!  My fever shot up this afternoon to 101.3. 

Once I get over this bug, I'll be thinking of other ways to fill my vacation days.  I wouldn't mind doing some shopping or spending time with family.

Well, I can't stay on the computer much longer.  I just feel so yucky.  I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Vacation... Here I Come!

My vacation officially begins Thursday morning.  Or you could say it officially begins when I leave the church office at noon today.  Either way, I'm almost there.

It has been a tough week for me, and I'm really ready to go away.  REALLY ready.  A friend of mine has moved away temporarily, and it's been rough dealing with my emotions and the emotions of my friends who are feeling the pain that comes with separation.

Vacation is giving me something new to look forward to.  I am going out of town.  Very much out of town, in fact.  Farther than I've been in a long time.  Let's see, I went to Disney World in October of 2000, so it's been just about 8 years since I have gone farther than a 4-hour trip.  But lest I get your hopes up for me, I'm not going to Disney World.  (Sorry, Amanda.)

I'm feeling pretty well prepared to head out early in the morning because I've made a list of what I needed to buy and what I didn't want to forget to pack.  I'm gonna throw all my stuff into a couple bags this afternoon, and I'll be ready. 

Whoever knows me in real life, please check on my husband while I'm gone.  Although he was accustomed to bachelorhood before our marriage, I'm leaving him for 10 days, and we've never been apart from each other for more than 2 days.  I'm purposely putting those thoughts out of my head, so as not to make my departure difficult.  I'm gonna miss him.... and Dixie, my baby girl!  {sigh}

I'll try to take some good pictures of my travels to share with you.  I anticipate I'll see some interesting sights en route to my destination.

So hang around.  I'm sure I'll be blogging on location...

It's Time

Guess who's going to take a vacation.  Yep, me!  I'm finally going to use up some of my vacation time in the next two weeks.  I usually take a week sometime during the year and save up the rest for Christmastime.

Now for the next question I know that each and every one of you is going to ask.  What am I going to do on my vacation?  Well, my friends, that is where I will leave you in suspense.  You're going to have to wait and see.  I will let you in on this much, though.  I've made arrangements for my piano duties to be filled at church next Sunday because I won't be there. {gasp}

I am looking forward to my vacation time.  I sure could use the downtime to be refreshed and encouraged, even to gain a fresh perspective in my spiritual life.  I've been going through a season of trial and spiritual growth, and I think vacation is going to be a time for reflecting and renewing my resolve to fight the fight of faith.

Hang with me.  I'll be sharing more.

These Are A Few of My Favorite (Disney) Things

Dear Amanda,

I'm so glad you asked about such an important topic to me.  You truly are a kindred spirit of the Disney kind.

What's your favorite Disney memory?

I've been thinking about Disney memories since you asked me a couple days ago, trying to determine what was the shining moment that stands out in all of my Disney vacation history.  I don't believe there's any one thing that I can say is my favorite memory.  You see, the magic of our years of Disney vacations cannot be summed up in just one thing.  It is one big package of sights and smells and sounds and feelings that make up the memory that is Disney for me.

First, I need to take you back to when this all began.  My parents sparked our Disney addiction at an early age.  We took our first vacation to Walt Disney World in 1979 when I was 5 years old.  Way back then there was just one park - The Magic Kingdom.  My parents knew how to pinch a penny, so my dad converted the inside of our van into a makeshift camper.  He laid carpet, paneled the walls, and even built a bed frame at the back and put a mattress in there, just so we could camp in it.  We actually got to lay on the bed as we traveled.  That was high class to me and Kath.  Mind you, this was before the days of children being required to ride in a car seat.  We camped at a nearby Jellystone Campground.

After that we got even fancier, borrowing campers or tents and actually moving into the Disney complex, staying at Fort Wilderness year after year.  The Disney property grew as the years went by.  I even love to tout the fact that Epcot opened just for my birthday in 1982.  We got to see Danny Kaye and Drew Barrymore filming a Disney special at the park.  I know.  You envy me right now, don't you? 

Those are fun memories, but like I said, the memories are all just one big bundle of magic I carry with me in my heart.  And when I think about Disney, it's these things that bring on the longing to return someday...

1. Upon arriving at Fort Wilderness, having to hurry to the restrooms just to hear the bluegrass music playing
2. Eating pizza at the Trail's End buffet at Fort Wilderness and listening to the banjo player
3. Taking a boat ride at night from Fort Wilderness to the Contemporary Resort
4. Riding in the nose of the Monorail
5. Riding on the buses and knowing you're having a shared experience with the people sitting around you
6. Arriving at the front gate of the Magic Kingdom and seeing Mickey's face done in floral landscaping
7. The music that surrounds you at every turn
8. Walking up Main Street USA and gawking at Cinderella Castle
9. All the smells (flowers, mulch, food, water, Florida)
10. Wanting to ride Peter Pan's Flight, even though it's a kiddie ride and you've done it a hundred times
11. Popcorn
12. Browsing through the candy shop and wanting one of everything
13. Playing in the old arcade at Contemporary Resort and then watching Summer Magic in the little theater
14. Riding the monorail from resort to resort, looking for souvenirs to buy at each stop
15. Swimming at the Polynesian Resort pool
16. The tropical foliage in the center of the Polynesian Resort
17. Watching the sunset at the Caribbean Beach
18. Eating sundaes at the ice cream parlor on Main Street
19. Country Bear Jamboree
20. The original Enchanted Tiki Room (it's my favorite!)
21. The entrance music at Epcot
22. Standing at the base of Spaceship Earth and trying to fathom the ginormousness of the thing
23. Getting goosebumps during the American Adventure
24. Taking a boat ride from Dixie Landings to Downtown Disney
25. Shopping at Downtown Disney
26. Eating ice cream sundaes at Ghirardelli's 

And honestly... this is only scratching the surface of everything I love to remember.

Wishing I was there,

Liz