Adventures Of A New MilWife

Disney World Free Dining 2012

2012-03-05T16:35:00.001-06:00

Ok. It's official. Today Disney opened up the free dining offer to the general public (American public only so far...international guests have not yet been included) if you book by May 18th (although you will need to book much sooner than that because the rooms are going fast) for stays between August 25th and September 27th. Don't worry if you're entire stay is not within those dates...just one overlapping night and you can get the offer for your entire stay. Also, keep in mind you can only have one discount at a time so you can't combine the current military discount and the free dining offer...just one is permitted and for the record, free dining will almost always save you more but do the numbers for your group and see for your self.

The way the free dining offer works is this...IT IS ONLY AVAILABLE TO GUESTS STAYING AT A DISNEY OWNED AND OPERATED RESORT. So, you are ineligible if you're someplace else like Shades of Green. It is a package inclusion...meaning you have to book a package...resort AND park tickets so if you're a season pass holder, you'll be required to buy TWO days worth of tickets...no more, no less are required.

If you stay at a Disney Value Resort you'll get the quick service plan (details on the exact differences on the plans can be found on my Disney Dining Plan page) for free.

If you stay at a Disney Moderate Resort EXCEPT FT WILDERNESS CAMPSITES or a Disney Deluxe Resort, you'll get the basic dining plan for free.

Either way, you can pay the difference to upgrade your dining plan...say from the quick to the basic if you're staying at a value resort or from the basic to the deluxe dining plan if you're staying at a moderate or deluxe resort.

A family of four staying at a moderate resort for 6 days, 5 nights could easily save over $600 with this great deal. Check it out and book today. In order to get the free offer YOU HAVE TO CALL IN. You can't book it online. The number is 407-939-7675. Expect the wait time to be significant. I called at 6am (my time...7am Orlando) to add this deal to our current package for a trip we had already reserved within the time frame and was on hold for 40 minutes before they got to me but within ten minutes I had the free dining and saved our family a significant amount of money. Disney phone lines are open every morning at 7am EST and stay open until 10pm EST.

Disney World Moderate Resorts

2012-03-05T16:15:00.001-06:00

This week we are covering the moderate resorts. We've already covered the pros and cons of staying on Disney property and a couple of your options for off property stays. We've also covered Disney's Value Resorts and next week we'll cover the Deluxe Resorts.

The moderates are just what they sound...slightly larger and with more amenities than the values but not as large or as luxurious as the deluxe resorts. As for price, they too fall in between and vary based on the time of year and which moderate you stay visit.

(photo credit: kingdom-travel.com)

The first moderate is coincidentally the first moderate built (although at the time there were no value resorts so it wasn't called a moderate back then). It's the Caribbean Beach Resort. I don't have any personal experience with this resort yet but we are excited to stay there this fall and I'll be sure to update any tips I find while there. One of the biggest reasons we're excited to check it out is that we will be staying in one of their Pirate Rooms.

(photo credit: examiner.com)

The CBR is a large resort with over 2,000 guest rooms divided into 6 villages. The big thing you should know when booking this resort is that there are no elevators here so unless you enjoy walking up stairs with small, sleeping children, request a ground floor room. The room prices vary on which type of room you get...standard, water view, standard pirate or water view pirate and range from $159-314 per night.

(photo credit: hotels.about.com...the main pool at CBR)

The next moderate is one many "non-Disney" type people often stay at. It's the Coronado Springs Resort. Because the Coronado has a 95,000 square foot convention center, it often hosts large groups and organizations. The resort is huge and has it's very own internal shuttle system.

(photo credit: expedia.com...Coronado Springs Resort)

Because Coronado plays host to so many conventions, it has some amenities other moderate and value resorts don't such as the La Vida Health Club and Rix Lounge-a 300 seat upscale lounge/bar that has a full bar and a dress code (no sneakers).

Room prices at the Coronado vary, like at all the resorts on what time of year you visit but also because it's a convention hotel, the Coronado has some suite options available as well. For a standard room with an occupancy of between 2 and 4 (2 for the rooms with a king sized bed) the rates range from $169-284 per night. For the suites where the max occupancy can be up to 6 in a room (all rooms also allow for ONE child under three in addition to the max occupancy) the prices range from $365-1330 per night...again based on what sort of suite you select and the time of year you visit.

(us. complete with anniversary buttons and Joshua's 1st time button...this was just after check-in at Port Orleans Riverside back in the day when all we had was a crappy camera)

The next resort is a personal favorite for my hubby and I...the Port Orleans Riverside resort is our home away from home. We've stayed in both the Alligator Bayou (southern bayou lodge style buildings) and Magnolia Bend (southern plantation mansion style buildings). We prefer the Magnolia Bend but that's just thematic differences and preferences. The biggest benefit to the Alligator Bayou is that instead of the standard room holding 4 people (and a single child under the age of 3), it hold 5 people (and a single child under the age of 3-although that would be quite a tight fit). They used to so this by using a trundle bed but POR is just finishing up a large remodeling project which has transformed many of the rooms from standard rooms to "Royal Guest" rooms themed after the movie the Princess and the Frog. Since the renovations to the Magnolia Bend are set to be complete on the new rooms in four days...March 9th, I don't have any pics to post except that which Disney has released. I'll update with some non-official pics as soon as I can get my hands on them. I did, however, find some non-Disney pics of the Alligator Bayou specialty rooms.

(photo credit: Disney...promo pic)

(photo credit: portorleans.org)

(photo credit: portorleans.org...this fold down bed inside the top of the bench has replaced the former trundle beds in the alligator bayou section of POR)

(photo credit: portorleans.org...what it looks like with the bed up)

The specialty rooms range in price from $189-314 per night based (again) on the time of year you visit. Standard rooms vary also based on the time of year and on whether you select a water or standard view from $159-279 per night. But before I finally move on from Port Orleans Riverside, I must mention Piano Bob. He's one of our favorite Disney stops. He's a family-friendly piano lounge entertainer inside the lounge at Port Orleans Riverside. He's hilarious. It's a great place to have a drink and sit and laugh with or without the kids. He usually preforms every Weds-Sat nights starting at 8pm. Check him out!

(Port Orleans French Quarter)

The biggest reasons we love Port Orleans Riverside are because it's small, quiet and a very peaceful resort. All these can also be said for Riverside's sister property Port Orleans French Quarter. When originally built, the two resorts were one property name Dixie Landings. Now each has it's own management, check-in, restaurants and pools. French Quarter has what probably seems like a logical theming motif given the name...you feel like you're in the middle of New Orleans during Mardi Gras.

Port Orleans French Quarter and Riverside share a bus line (although usually when the parks close and all day during busier times of year, Disney will split them and send more buses out so you won't have to wait too long). Because they're so close, one of our favorite things to do when staying Riverside is just walk over to French Quarter and enjoy some of their yummy beignets. I've had beignets in New Orleans during Mardi Gras and the ones at Disney's French Quarter are easily as good.

(yes, I'm fully aware that I'm a giant dork)

Although we haven't stayed at French Quarter, from our visits in the past and especially since Riverside will no doubt become very popular with their new specialty rooms, staying at French Quarter could be wonderful. Pricing for French Quarter varies (broken record much?) by the time of year and what sort of view you have...standard, water or river from $164-254.

There is one more resort which Disney considers as a moderate resort. That is the Ft Wilderness Campground and Cabins. The name pretty much sums it up. You can either bring a tent or an RV and pay for a lot (there are showers and such if you go the tent route) or you can rent a cabin which holds up to 6 people (and one infant/child under the age of 3). Ft Wilderness is VERY large and you cannot get around on your own by just walking. You will either have to use the internal bus system that Disney provides (free of charge of course) or as many people do, bring a golf cart of your own.

(photo credit: Disney. It's the official promo pic for the Ft Wilderness Cabins)

Campsites range from $48-126 per night based on the time of year AND what sort of amenities come with the campsite. It's anything from just a place to pop up your tent to a full hook up premium campsite. Meanwhile, the cabins can be booked for anywhere from $285-455 per night and all include a FULL kitchen...

"Kitchen includes:

full-size refrigerator with icemaker

electric stove

microwave

dishwasher

1 4-cup coffee maker (with 1 filter-pack of coffee)

1 10 cup coffee maker (stored in cupboard)

toaster

tea kettle

flatware for 6: forks, salad forks, teaspoons, soups spoons, knives and steak knives

dinnerware for 6: mugs, cereal bowls, dinner plates, dessert plates

6 handled mason jar glasses

1 serving spoon

1 glass measuring cup

1 2 qt. pitcher

1 2 qt. casserole with lid

1 glass baking dish

1 oval platter

manual can opener

bottle opener

corkscrew

cutting board

bread knife

ladle

spatula

1 12" skillet

1 1 qt. saucepan with lid

1 2 qt. saucepan with lid

Dutch oven with lid

metal colander

spoon rest

2 potholders

2 sponges

4 cloth dish towels

fire extinguisher (under sink)

packets of dishwasher soap

liquid dish soap

paper towels (under sink)

trash bags (under sink)"

....list found on allears.net

Ft Wilderness offers everything you would hope for in a camping experience from laid back employees (cast members in Disney language) to campfires complete with your favorite Disney movie under the stars. Another big reason so many people love Ft Wilderness is because it is the only Disney resort that is pet friendly. For an additional $5/day your own Pluto can go to Disney World. Speaking of which, if you decide to stay at any other Disney or non-Disney resort in the area, keep the Best Friends Pet Care facilities in mind. Although not owned and operated by Disney, it is essentially the Disney pet resort. They'll take great care of your little fur babies and they don't discriminate based on breed.

I know this week was a long one but the moderates are all just that much more themed and have that much more to offer than the values. Of course, next week we'll take a look at the deluxe resorts (although I'm thinking we may need to split that into a couple weeks given the sheer amount of amenities and unique thematic elements each resort has).

In the end, where you stay comes down to your family. Your budget. Your preferences. And your style. We have never stayed in the deluxe resorts because we can't justify the cost for our family when we're very rarely in the room. We spend at least 10-12 hours a day in the parks and our kids have never had a hard time sleeping in their strollers so moderate and value is the way we go.

Our Doll

2012-02-28T12:27:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I got a package in the mail that I had been eagerly anticipating. It was the headbands I ordered for baby girl and I. Pink feathers on a stretchy headband for the girl and white feathers on a thin white metal band for me. I had ordered them from Two Little Wrens on Etsy.

Honestly it was a little like Christmas when I saw that the package had arrived. I threw on the first dress that matched her new pink headband and stepped outside to take pics. I was so excited! Unfortunately, the boy was wearing pajama pants when I stepped outside and because apparently he knew not to go outside in PJs, he took them off and put shoes on, nothing else, just shoes. Yup. He stepped outside wearing nothing but his Buzz Lightyear underwear and a pair of crocs. Since we were in the front yard and that's not how we roll, I had to redirect him inside and upstairs to his room to get some real clothes on. He came back out in a pair of jeans that were at least two sizes too small and on backwards but my window for pics with the girl is always so small, I didn't care. While he rode his tricycle in front of our house, I got to play with our little doll...

Here she is......

Anniversary

2012-02-27T12:54:00.001-06:00

Normally, I'm not one to post twice in a day but I was looking at the calendar and it dawned on me that Joshua left for deployment a year ago today. He left for training and although we saw him for a few days in March and the boy saw him again in June for a few days (I was too pregnant to travel) before he left the country, it's been a year since he's lived at home. I don't really know what to say and I'm not entirely certain why I thought I should blog about it which is odd for me because I usually only blog when I have a clear idea in mind or I need to vent. Neither is the case today. I'm not upset by the fact that it's been a year. I don't have any pearls of wisdom. It just seemed like it was something that shouldn't go by without at least an acknowledgement. It has been both the hardest year of my life but not entirely bad. I feel closer to Joshua than before he left. We have a beautiful daughter who was born healthy and happy. Our son is thriving. I feel weird saying it but it's been a good year. Of course, every single good moment was bitter sweet. It's been a year. We're almost done.

Disney World Value Resorts

2012-02-27T09:43:00.000-06:00

We're continuing our series on Disney World Resorts. Check out last week's post you're looking for information on staying off property (specifically the Shades of Green military family resort) or you want a balanced look at the pros and cons of staying at a Disney owned and operated resort.

This week we're going to cover Disney World's Value Resorts. In case you're new to this whole world of Disney vacation planning, Disney World divides their resort properties (hotels...not to be confused with the proper, full name of Disney World which is Walt Disney World Resort) into value, moderate and deluxe categories. Just to make things complicated, there are also DVC (Disney Vacation Club) resorts which is a timeshare sort of program we'll cover later.

Value resorts are the most economical rooms. They're also the smallest and usually the busiest of the resorts-often hosting larger groups like the annual cheerleading competition families and coaches. They're set up sort of like a motel with the room doors facing the outside rather than inside a hotel lobby or hallway. The amenities include pizza delivery, luggage delivery (hourly), food courts, pools and of course Disney transportation.

The value resorts include the original All-Star series...the All-Star Movies, All-Star Music and All-Star Sports resorts. The All-Star Resorts are all full of huge icons like Buzz and Woody, a giant jukebox and even Goliath-sized football helmets. One of the most common criticism of the All-Star resorts is that all three often share the same buses...so that when you board a Disney bus at the parks to go back to your resort, you may have to stop at two other resorts before finally making it to your stop. Usually at the end of the night and all day during busier times of year, the buses are separated by resort. I can't speak to whether or not this is really an issue because as an adult, I've only stayed at the All-Stars once and we used our own vehicle.

In addition to the All-Star resorts, Disney has a fourth value resort named Pop Century. It has five sections divided by decades from the 50's to the 90's with each section themed with giant icons like rubix cubes, yo-yos and bowling pins. Originally, earlier decades were to be built across the hourglass lake with a bridge that was to be named the "Generation Gap Bridge" but instead Disney built their most recent Disney Resort, the Art of Animation...now taking reservations for late 2012 vacations.

The Art of Animation is Disney's response to the need of larger families to have an economic place to stay on property. There are family suites in the All-Star Music Resort but not many so Disney dedicated over 1,100 rooms at the Art of Animation resort to family suites. Here's a list of the differences between standard rooms and suites in the value resorts...

Standard rooms have approximately 260 square feet each...Suites are about twice that

Standard rooms hold 4 people (and one child under 3)...Suites can hold 6 people (and one child under 3)

BASED ON THE TIME OF YEAR YOU GO...

Standard rooms range from $92-194/night...Suites range from $199-375/night

Standard rooms have...

-either two double beds or a single King

-in-room wall safe

-32" TV

-ironing board

-vanity area with one sink and a separate bathroom area with toilet and tub/shower

-bedrails and pack n plays are available free of charge upon request (it's a good idea to call ahead and request it so that you don't arrive to nothing)

-mini-refrigerators are also available upon request for a fee...$10.60 (with tax) per night

Suites have...

-separate living room and "master" bedroom

-both rooms have a 27" TV

-the master bedrooms have a queen size bed and desk

-the living rooms have a sofa that opens to a double bed and a chair/ottoman that each open to a single bed

-kitchenette with an under the counter refrigerator (much larger than the mini you can add to a standard room), microwave, sink and coffee maker

-two bathrooms-each like the standard room's bathrooms...a vanity area with one sink each and a separate toilet and tub/shower

In the end, the value resorts are well-themed, well-staffed and a great place to stay if you're a family on a budget...especially if it's your first time to Disney World because chances are you'll spend most of your time in the parks and just use the resort to sleep, clean up and change clothes. If, however, you have very small children and you KNOW they will not sleep in their strollers in the parks, be aware that the value resorts are all some of the furthest away from the parks-up to twenty minutes by bus so an afternoon nap at the resort will really cut into your time in the parks. It's doable but it's something you should consider.

On a personal note, I've stayed in value resorts both as a kid and as an adult. I remember playing in the All-Star Sports pool as a kid and it never crossed my mind that I was missing out because the value pools don't have slides like the moderate and deluxe resort pools. I wasn't big into sports but I thought the resort was "so cool!" because of all the huge icons. The thing I remember most about that trip was walking down Main St in Magic Kingdom and I don't think that would have changed if we had stayed somewhere with more amenities. As an adult, I've found Pop Century to be my favorite of the values (although I'm excited to check out the Art of Animation Resort soon!).

Finally, if you're a large family, consider booking two standard value rooms instead of just one suite. It's the same amount of space, basically the same amenities (minus the kitchenette) and you can request adjoining rooms...we've done this countless times when we went with friends and family and although they won't ever guarantee the request, we have never been disappointed. It would hold 8 people plus two children under 3 (one in each room) so if your family's too big for the suites but on a budget that prohibits the larger Disney Villas, two standard value rooms might be the best option for you!

Next week we'll cover Moderate Resorts...including our personal favorite, Port Orleans Riverside!

Girly-ness

2012-02-21T22:06:00.000-06:00

I wouldn't necessarily say it took having a daughter for me to fully embrace all things girly but it certainly hasn't hurt.

Tonight has been full of fun girly-ness. First, one of my favorite friends had her gender ultrasound today and they found out they're having another girl! Super excited for her!

Then, since I was in a "retail therapy" sort of mood, I bought the CUTEST hair accessory for our little princess from an awesome Etsy seller.

(this is the one I bought)

(this is the seller's image of what it looks like on a baby that might just be the second cutest baby I've ever seen)

Of course, now I have to post a pic of my little princess because she is the cutest baby ever (my apologies to our son but really...I'm not wrong)...

(this was her at the pediatrician last week...it's a cell phone pic so it's not the best but don't you just want to snatch her up!!!...don't even think about trying to though because her big brother will take you out)

Since I was buying something fun for the girl, I went ahead and bought one for me too and decided to coordinate with my little girl...

(it's a bit hard to tell with the background being white too but the headband itself is much thinner than the baby one so I can curl my hair and have it down or put it up)

Can you say homecoming ceremony?

Eeek.

Ok. In related girly news, my favorite blogger (and one of my favorite real life friends) JG from Me and My Soldierman posted an AWESOME response to that ridiculous pic going around facebook of the Disney Princesses and all the supposedly negative things they teach with her own version which I love and had to steal...

Disney Resorts...on-property vs off-property & Shades of Green

2012-02-20T12:43:00.000-06:00

One of the biggest expenses and first decisions you need to make with a Disney World Vacation is where you decide to stay. So this week we're starting a series covering the many options.

First, let's talk about Disney-owned versus non-Disney resorts. Often referred to as the "on-property versus off-property" decision but that's a bit of a misnomer because there are a handful of resorts that are technically on Disney property but are not owned or operated by Disney employees. The one resort that falls into this quasi-Disney category that I think most of you who read my blog regularly would be interested in is the Shades of Green...aka the military resort. It is an AFRC (Armed Forces Recreation Center) and as such requires a military ID and current LES print out upon check in. Price-wise the Shades of Green nightly fees are based on military or civilian grade (in addition to active duty, Guard and Reserve members, some DoD employees and foreign military service members are eligible to stay). To make a reservation you can either go to the Shades of Green website or just call 1-888-593-2242. Although, Shades of Green is not owned or operated by Disney their guests can still enjoy some of the same perks of staying at a Disney-owned and operated resort. Speaking of which, below are a list of the benefits to saying at a Disney-owned resort.

*Package delivery...when you buy a souvenir in the parks but don't want to carry it around all day, you can have Disney send it (FOR FREE) back to your resort's gift shop

*Extra Magic Hours...every day ONE park will EITHER open an hour early OR stay open up to three hours late only for resort guests (Shades of Green guests are eligible for this perk...they are the ONLY non-Disney-owned resort guests eligible for extra magic hours)

*Disney's Magical Express...if you fly into Orlando International Airport (from another airport within the continental US) and stay at a Disney-owned resort, Disney will mail you luggage tags a few weeks before your trip to attach to all your checked luggage so that when you arrive in Orlando, all you have to do is get on a bus. A couple hours after you arrive, your bags will be delivered to your room. This is FREE resort amenity offered, just be sure to let Disney know your flight itinerary if you don't book your airfare with your Disney package

*Free parking at all Disney Parks...otherwise it's currently $14/day but if you hop from one park to another, the original fee is all you pay...one price per day regardless of how many parks (Shades of Green guests are eligible for free parking at Disney parks with a valid SoG guest ID)

*Disney's internal transportation system...they'll bus you from your resort to any of the parks. The buses come frequently enough that, in our experience, it's been rare to wait more than 10 or 15 minutes for a bus and usually it's closer to 5 minutes. There's also the monorail between Epcot, Magic Kingdom and the transportation/ticket center as well as boats to and from Magic Kingdom and Downtown Disney for resorts along the water way (Shades of Green and many other "off-property" resorts also have a busing system to get their guests back and forth from their resort to the parks)

*Disney Dining Plan is ONLY available to resort guests staying at Disney-owned and operated resorts. Also, it is offered from time to time as a FREE package inclusion for their guests which can certainly offset the additional cost of staying at a Disney resort. To be honest, the dining plan is probably the biggest reason we stay at Disney-owned resorts. Whether or not it's included as a free package inclusion, it's just really convenient to go and know we don't have to budge X amount of money per day for food...it's already been taken care of

*Convenience. It might sound silly but when you stay at a Disney-owned resort, everything can be on your "Key to the World"...it's your room key, your dining card (if you are on a Disney Dining Plan), your charge card (if you decide to add charging options to it-not required and not recommended on kid's cards) and during extra magic hours, it's how you show you're a Disney resort guest

There are only three real downsides I can see to staying at a Disney-owned and operated resort.

1-Price. You can almost certainly get the same amount of space/amenities...if not more, for less than you will pay for a Disney-owned and operated resort.

2-Inconvenience to other non-Disney parks like Universal Studios or Sea World. Unless you bring your own vehicle or rent a car, you'll pay a significant fee for taxi service to another non-Disney park.

3-Finding someplace to stay if you have a large family. There are suites for families of six or less, some villas in the DVC resorts can hold those extra large families ($$$!) and you can always book multiple rooms but Disney really doesn't have many options especially for larger families on a budget.

In the end, it comes down first to what you can afford as a family and then what you want. Staying "on-property" certainly has it's perks and rooms start around $100/night but if you're a larger family or a family on a tighter budget, staying "off-property" might be a better fit. One of my favorite planning sites, Allears.net has a list of preferred "off-site" properties with some great discounts.

Over the next few weeks, we'll cover your various Disney Resort options starting next week with Disney Value Resorts.

Today.

2012-02-16T21:28:00.001-06:00

Normally I'm not a fan of just whining blog posts but yeah, basically this is just going to be a big ol' vent about today because today kicked my butt.

Today...

I had my annual lady exam...that's always fun.

I found out I'm anemic. Again.

I tried to take a nap...failed.

The boy broke a window. I knew it was only a matter of time but really I thought he'd be a little older than three and a half. Thankfully, it was our window and so I don't have to pay for someone else's window AND bake something as an apology for my crazy child. In his defense, it wasn't malicious and I'm actually pretty impressed with his engineering abilities but that's a pretty long story in and of itself. Anyway, I bought some plastic and tape and did the best I could to "fix" it until I either have someone come and replace it or Joshua comes home and does it himself. Thankfully it was just a smaller window in an alcove in his room that faces the backyard.

The girl was running a low grade fever all day and not napping...whether from a vaccine yesterday or teething I have no idea (please no emails or comments on the merits or evils of vaccines...we've made our choices and we respect yours whatever they are).

After hours of low grade fever/no napping delirium, I decided to give the girl a little tylenol. I opened it in the kitchen, measured the correct amount and since the boy was napping upstairs, I left the bottle open and unattended to take it to the girl. On my way back to the kitchen to clean up and put the medicine away, I stopped at the bathroom which apparently gave our dog just enough time to knock the bottle over and lick up what I estimate to be about a tablespoon of children's tylenol.

Called the vet...for the second time this week...a couple days ago he ate almost my entire box of Tagalong Girl Scout cookies...it's a miracle he's still alive today because they're my favorites and they were my last box. He'll also survive the tylenol and the vet said he didn't need to see him which is good because I'm pretty sure if I had to take the dog into the vet today after everything else, I would have had a total breakdown.

Yeah. So, venting session over. Thanks for listening. Next post will be much less whiny I promise.

My Heart Skips A Beat

2012-02-14T13:14:00.000-06:00

I hadn't planned on blogging today but this morning I woke up with a migraine that has made it almost impossible to do even the easiest of things. I'm not focusing well (I apologize in advance for the inevitable typos to come), I'm nauseous and have no appetite. All of which has lead to heart palpitations. Don't worry. It's normal...for me.

When I get dehydrated, overly hungry, eat too much sugar or any of about a dozen other triggers, I have palpitations. A simple head cold like what I assume I'm experiencing now can bring it all on. I have what's called SVT...or super ventricular tachycardia. Sexy, right?! In a nutshell, the electrical current is messed up and my heart skips beats, it also speeds up and pumps before it actually has a chance to fill with blood...which hurts. It's not so debilitating that I have to go to the hospital...not normally at least. There are tricks to reverse the tachycardia and ways to avoid defribulation. It's not generally considered a life-threatening condition in and of itself. It is a giant pain in the butt when I'm pregnant (which of course I'm not) but more than anything on deployment days like today, it makes me miss my husband.

He doesn't baby me when I have "an episode." He doesn't ignore me either. He knows what will make it better and he knows that I hate it. I hate being weak. I hate being broken. But most of all I hate that I did it to myself. I don't talk about it much because it's literally my heart and it's difficult to admit. I damaged my heart by not eating. Anorexia. It's not a word I like to use because it congers up images of bony, damaged girls. I'm healthy now...well, apart from my heart. I eat. I love to eat. I still don't always see myself the way I should but it doesn't stop me from making healthy choices. It's just another thing that's easier when Joshua's home. Really everything is easier. I'm more myself when I'm with him. I'm more confident. I can relax. Ironically, one of the tips my cardiologists have repeated over the years is to meditate and relax as much as possible because stress only aggravates the condition. I try but honestly, I won't fully be able to relax until he's home. He's my best friend. He makes my heart skip a beat in a good way and I miss him.

So, today, while everyone is enjoying their chocolates (and other caffeinated, overly sugary yummy stupid things that I can't have-no bitterness really) and holding their husbands, I'm holding my breath (vagal maneuver) and waiting for mine to return. A year from now I hope I remember today. I hope I remember how lucky I will be to eat chocolate and hold Joshua.

Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue

2012-02-13T11:55:00.001-06:00

The last but certainly not least (in our opinions) of the signature dinner shows is the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue. I've already covered the Spirit of Aloha Luau and Mickey's Backyard BBQ but this week I'm going to tell you about our favorite Disney World dinner show.

The Hoop Dee Doo is one of the longest (if not the longest...can't seem to get a straight answer on that one) continuously running musicals in American history. It's a an old-fashioned, foot stomping musical comedy with buckets (literally) of food. Something like 10 MILLION people have been to the Ft Wilderness show. The show includes some audience participation and is a favorite with older kids who will be able to understand some of the jokes. The last time we went we had a 7 yr old girl, 3 yr old boy and two infants. Of course the infants had no opinions. The 3 yr old loved the food and thought the dancing and clapping was fun but after a full day in the parks, he didn't have the attention span to actually watch the show. The 7 yr old enjoyed it but was sleepy towards the end.

The show starts out with a song and as the servers take drink orders. Unlimited draft beer, sangria, wine, coffee, tea, milk, juice, lemonade and soda pop (the root beer is excellent and served in a frosted mug) are all included in the cost of the show...specialty drinks and bottled beer can be purchased separately.

On the menu:

Salad

Bread with honey butter (so good!)

BBQ Ribs

Fried Chicken

Baked Beans

Mashed Potatoes

Strawberry Shortcake

Something I want to point out is that although the food is served family style, you can always ask your server to bring more of one item or less of another. Our family doesn't eat pork ribs so whenever we go we just make sure to mention it and that we'll just like more chicken instead. Also, this is one of the most accommodating restaurants when it comes to a food allergy. I've seen the chefs come out personally and talk to a table to see what they can do. I have heard that it's not uncommon for the head chef to call you at home before your trip if you mention a food allergy when you make the reservation so that they can be prepared to give you something that not only works with your food allergy but also is yummy. I've see the gluten-free food (people next to us a couple years ago had a young girl with celiac's disease) and it looked great. She was served everything the rest of us got, she just had gluten-free versions served separately.

There are three shows nightly that each last just shy of 2 hours. Generally 5, 715 and 930 respectively but Disney has done some testing with other time slots to see if slightly earlier for each show might be better. No word on if the times will change permanently so just be sure to call and double check the times available when you make your reservation. Speaking of which, reservations are accepted 180 days in advance and although it might seem crazy to book a dinner show six months out, it really can be necessary especially in the busier times of year when the shows book up fast.

Because the show is at Ft Wilderness, you can either get there by boat from Magic Kingdom or by vehicle (your own or Disney bus) but remember if you drive or take the bus, you will then have to take the internal bus system at Ft Wilderness from the parking lot to the pavilion. The internal bus ride will take about 10-15 minutes depending on how many stops along the way are needed for other passengers. We've never had to wait more than 10 minutes for an internal bus to pick us up but since it can add almost half an hour to your travel time, be sure to leave the parks or your resort with enough time.

If you attend the earliest show, you'll be out early enough to hop on the ferry boat and head back to Magic Kingdom for Wishes, the nightly fireworks show in Magic Kingdom. If you opt for the second show, you might make it out in time to go to the beach at Ft Wilderness where the ferry boat docks. There are hammocks and white sand to lay out on and watch Wishes.

Any one of the three dinner show times can be purchased with either credit at at the time of booking or you can opt to use Disney Dining Credits. If you use credits, remember that the show will charge TWO table serve credits per person because it's a signature meal. If you're paying out of pocket for the show, there are three price options based on where your table will be in relation to the stage.

Category 1 seating is directly in front, center stage and costs $67.99 for adults (10 yrs+) and $34.99 for kids (3-9 yrs).

Category 2 seating is on the sides and behind the Category 1 seating and in the center of the balcony seating and costs $62.99 for adults (10+ yrs) and $30.99 for kids (3-9 yrs)

Category 3 seating is in the balcony on the sides and costs $58.99 for adults (10+ yrs) and $29.99 for kids (3-9 yrs)

The costs listed include tax and gratuity. As always, any children under 3 may eat for free with a paying adult.

Although Category 1 seating is not technically allowed with dining credits, we've been on a couple different occasions during slower times of year when we booked Category 2 seating with dining credits but had a table almost directly in front of the stage. A lot of that sort of thing will depend on how many people on in your party and how early you book your reservations.

One of our favorite ways to do Hoop Dee Doo is to book it for our first night...especially if we're not going to make it into the parks that day based on our travel itinerary. It's a great way to kick off a Disney World vacation and a particularly fun way to introduce Disney to anyone going with us for the first time.

Stop Stirring and Start Talking

2012-02-10T09:44:00.001-06:00

By now, many of you have probably read a certain Army Wife from Vermont's self-admitted blog rant about the differences she sees between active Army and Guardsmen. To say it was one-sided would be kind. She relegated the entire Vermont Army National Guard to no better than uneducated, step-child status...in fact, she made it clear that they are classless, prone to PTSD, sacrifice less and aren't even "soldiers."

I'm a Guardsman's wife so I clearly am biased but as much as I'd like to return fire for fire...and I could especially considering most of her contentions were factually wrong, it's pointless. She's clearly an "upper" and it wouldn't do any good. So, I'm ignoring her and addressing the rest of the military blogging community. Instead of attacking an entire branch of the US military, why can't we have a grown up discussion over the differences.

Every branch is different.

Every branch makes sacrifices the others don't.

Every branch has perks the others don't.

As a Guard family, my husband will, over the course of his career, most likely deploy less frequently than an active duty Army family. We knew that when he joined. It's one of the reasons he went Guard. Although, let's be honest, the idea that it will be four years before he deploys again is almost laughable...actually it is laughable because once he returns he's only considered non-deployable for two and a half years. And then, of course, you have to take into consideration the bill proposed by President Obama which will shrink the military 10-15% over the next ten years. When asked how the military will compensate for the inevitable troop shortage, Obama has said the federal government will rely more heavily on Guard and Reserve components. Now, if you want to talk about how Guard units are first and foremost a state militia....how they should be at home protecting the interests of the state and not abroad fighting for the federal government, that's a valid contention. That's something we can discuss. But let's be honest, that's not the current situation. Right now, Guard and Reserve units fight and die next to active duty units every day.

Another difference: PCSing. We don't. Active duty families do. I can only imagine how difficult it must be to have to pack up and move every three years. How much of a strain that must be on children and the military spouse's career. But I can also see it as an exciting way to travel the country, even the world. As a Guard family, we don't PCS to another base...in fact, we don't live anywhere near a base. The two closest military installations are both Air Force bases and each over an hour away. To make it to a monthly FRG meeting my kids and I have to drive up to three hours each way...for a meeting that generally lasts less than two hours but we do it because our every day lives are surrounded by civilians who often just don't understand and that short window every month we're with people who know what we know and feel what we feel.

Which brings me to the last difference I'm going to write about today: civilian jobs. It's true active duty guys don't come home to civilian lives. They're surrounded by the Army their entire careers. When my husband returns from his deployment, he'll go back to work for a civilian company. He'll be at a job where people won't understand why in the beginning he might flinch when there's a loud noise. We live with the knowledge that although there's legal protection for his civilian job, there's also an economic reality and a Guardsman cannot always give what a civilian can give to a civilian job. The fact is promotions can be negatively affected. It's understandable too from the employers perspective.

We constantly live in two worlds. That doesn't make us classless. That doesn't make my husband more likely to have PTSD when he returns. That doesn't make our sacrifices any less. That doesn't make us less than an active duty Army family. It makes us different.

Sprint: The Screw-You Now Network

2012-02-07T17:20:00.001-06:00

A couple months ago I was having trouble with my phone...actually I had been having issues with the possessed piece of crap pretty much since the moment I bought it. You may remember me venting about it but if not, basically, I was eligible for an upgrade but then Sprint changed their policies and took the upgrade away and between Joshua and I we had nothing but TERRIBLE customer service.

The ONLY reason I stayed with Sprint was because our plan just worked so great for us and really switching companies and dealing with new phone numbers and early cancellation fees for three different lines (two phones and an internet card) that all had different contract time lines seemed like an even bigger (and very expensive) pain in the butt.

And then today...while taking a nap I got a text from Sprint directing me to their website because there was an announced coverage change. I ignored it and went back to sleep because what company lowers their coverage area? That's not what they do...they expand their networks. Right? Wrong.

Sprint, I have since learned, has sold many of their towers in Oklahoma and some in Kansas to Verizon. The map is unbelievable and if you live in Oklahoma or Kansas and have Sprint, you need to be aware of the new coverage maps that will take effect March 1st. As a result we LIVE in what is about to be a roaming area. This is a problem for a couple of reasons.

A-we get our internet from Sprint and the roaming data usage max is dramatically less than 3G usage
B-we already spend WAY too much money every month with Sprint and so any overage charges would honestly be insulting
C-READ THE FINE PRINT...under the terms and conditions with Sprint, although you may think, as I mistakenly did that you aren't charged for roaming, you are...well, you are if you reach your max...meaning there's a limited amount of roaming minutes and a limited amount of roaming data allowed per phone line-obviously living in a roaming area with a deployed husband, reaching that max is going to happen all. the. time so just dropping the internet card is not an option

So in the last hour and a half I've gone from napping to contacting Sprint to cancel all three of the lines on our contract. All were canceled without an early termination fee...you bet I talked my way up the ladder to get out of that because at this stage in each of the contracts (mine was JUST renewed!) it would have cost us $790! We still have service (month-to-month I guess is what it would be called) on all three lines until we find a new provider and can "port" our phone numbers over.

Now the big question is who do we sign up with? Verizon since they're taking over the towers? T-mobile-we've had a ton of friends recommend them but what's their coverage like? And how do I sign us up?-I'm a stay at home mom...meaning no income to my name. I do have a power of attorney for my husband but I would SO much rather wait for him to come home and deal with it. Of course we're going to have to buy new phones and otterboxes. There's going to be activation fees and blah blah blah. Yeah. I'm over it. So wish I was still napping.

PS>Joshua doesn't know any of it yet! Deployment makes life so weird.

Mickey's Backyard BBQ

2012-02-06T10:37:00.000-06:00

Our family has had the pleasure of participating in Mickey's Backyard BBQ twice so far. We love it and more importantly, our son loves it! The show includes rope tricks, country music from a live country-western band and line dancing.

Like Disney's other two dinner shows, the Spirit of Aloha Luau and the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue, the BBQ can be purchased with credits from Disney's Dining Plan or you can pay out of pocket when you make your reservations...up to 180 days in advance (highly recommended). If you're not using dining credits, the cost for the dinner show is $54.99 for adults (ages 10 and up) and $31.99 for children (ages 3-9). Children under 3 are welcome to share with someone else in the party. The BBQ is set up buffet style with long picnic tables around the room.

The most important thing I can tell you about the BBQ is that unlike the other dinner shows, the BBQ seating is NOT pre-arranged...it's first come, first serve meaning that if you want a good seat, you HAVE to get there early...like REALLY early. The show starts at 6:30 but I would recommend getting to the pavilion no later than 5:30...5 would be better. Also keep in mind that the show is at Disney's Fort Wilderness resort and NOT at Wilderness Lodge (a common mix up). Once you arrive at Fort Wilderness, either by your own vehicle or by Disney bus, you'll have to use the resort's internal bus system to get to the pavilion. It WILL take longer than you expect to get there so be sure to leave early. Also, since the show is in a pavilion, there is a chance that it will be canceled due to weather. It's covered so there's some protection but just be aware of the possibility.

Don't worry about what to do to keep the kiddos busy when you arrive early...Disney has horseshoes, sidewalk chalk, hoola hoops and even some of the characters come out for meet and greets before they open up the pavilion. If it's warm/hot out they'll also serve lemonade to keep everyone well hydrated.

The biggest reason to arrive early is to get a good seat for the show but don't worry too much if you don't get a table right at the front because the best part about the BBQ is that the characters will dance with your children and not just in front of the main center stage. There are painted squares around the pavilion. Each of the squares is where the characters will all rotate and dance with kids in addition to the center area. The characters that come are Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip and Dale. They will NOT go table to table so be prepared to go to them.

Warning: there will be children (and their parents) who are pushing and want to get autograph books signed-which btw, is not encouraged but they usually clear out early. There are three different "dance sets" so don't panic when the characters leave to take a break after the first set-they will come back. It's a good time to get some food and drinks. Speaking of which, the BBQ offers a couple different salads, cole slaw, beans, mac n cheese, corn on the cob, cornbread, bbq chicken, ribs, hot dogs and hamburgers. Dessert is terribly good...freezers FULL of ice cream bars. It's one of my husband favorite things. In addition to the lemonade, iced tea, beer and wine are available and included in the cost of the show. When you go to get an alcoholic drink, the table is on the far end of the pavilion, away from the other drinks and you are permitted to take two at a time but may return for more but please drink responsibly. Also, if you're on the young-ish side, you should know that the BBQ is one of only two places at Disney where I've been carded which at this point in life is a compliment but it can be a pain if you forget your ID.

One of my concerns the first year we took the boy was that he was going to be too intimidated to dance with the characters because he had only just turned two and hadn't had a whole lot of experience with things like that. He was a bit nervous but as long as we were with him, he LOVED it. Our friends went with us that year and they had two girls 8 and 6 and a 4 yr old boy who all really enjoyed it.

This year we returned-the boy was 3yrs old. In addition to our son, our daughter (2 months) and two of their cousins (7 yr old girl and 6 month old boy) joined us. Our son (loud, typical boy) and the 7 yr old (who is a somewhat shy little girl) had a blast. As for the babies, our daughter slept through most of it because we had a table closer to the back and the 6 month old surprisingly loved it and refused to miss any of it by sleeping. We were able to nurse both babies at the show without a problem (although we both used nursing covers).

The show technically ends at 8pm but you're free to leave whenever you are done. It's a very laid back dinner show with some really fun entertainment. I recommend it especially if you have kids in the 3-9 range.

Nightmares

2012-02-01T09:06:00.000-06:00

Sunday night I had a nightmare. It wasn't a big deal really. Not even that terrifying necessarily. The thing is I have a huge fear of snakes. I've always hated them...I blame Eve. Seriously though, it didn't get better when I almost got bit by a rattlesnake while I was working and living at a backpacking ranch in New Mexico the summer after high school. I was only really saved because a friend of mine managed to push me out of the way. Anyway, there was a picture floating around facebook of a really big snake and since I'm so much of a visual person, it stuck with me and that night my dreams were filled with the giant snake.

I tossed and turned all night but I woke up and tried to brush it off. Monday night's krav maga class (a self-defense/fitness class that I recommend highly if you ever get the chance) was the perfect outlet for the stress. Only this week's class we did a drill that was difficult. There was the physically strenuous part that happens every week (my legs are still mush) but then there was a mental side to it. One of the things we did was choking drills...more accurately we worked on how to get out of a choke hold. I guess I have to back up. A long, long time ago I was on a date. It ended up being a bad situation that could have been a really bad situation. The class brought up feelings and memories that are painful and the only person I wanted to talk to about it has been unable to call or skype with me. So, I'm comforting myself with girl scout cookies and the knowledge that I did it. I fought through the class while maintaining my composure and I learned how to fight out of a choke hold. And two days later I haven't had any nightmares.

Disney's Spirit of Aloha Luau

2012-01-30T10:37:00.000-06:00

One of our favorite things to do when we're at Disney World is to catch at least one of Disney's three dinner shows: Spirit of Aloha Luau, Mickey's Backyard BBQ and Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue.

All three shows can be paid for with credits from the Disney Dining Plan. If you're not using the dining plan, payment is required at the time of booking (up to 180 days in advance...highly recommended as shows can sell out especially at busier times of the year). All three shows include entertainment, food and drinks...including some alcoholic beverages for the adults in your party. This week I'm going to cover The Spirit of Aloha Luau and the next couple weeks will cover the other two dinner shows.

The Spirit of Aloha

If you're staying at a Disney Resort, pick up your tickets at the concierge desk before going to the show to save some time. Don't worry about arriving extra early to get a good seat-they're assigned before you arrive. When you check in at the Polynesian Resort's dinner show, you're greeted with a lei and a photopass cast member is on hand to take your picture.

(the boy was sleeping in his stroller so we got a shot of just the two of us)

The dinner starts with some yummy coconut pineapple bread which was really yummy. Drink orders are taken...specialty drinks are an extra fee but there's some fun ones like Pele's Fire Punch served in a coconut shaped like a monkey that you get to take home...

The food was served family style and included the yummy bread, mixed greens, pineapple, BBQ pork ribs, roasted chicken, fried rice, and veggies. Dessert was a big hit as the Kilauea Volcano Delight (kind of like a chocolate puddling) came out on trays with smoking volcanoes.

(he ate an entire volcano himself...at 14 months)

The show tells the story of a couple in love and includes traditional dancers and a fire thrower.

The cost of the show varies based on your seat and the time of year. For children (3-9 yrs old) the price ranges from $29.99-$36.99. For adults (10 yrs and up) the price ranges from $58.99-$71.99. The prices include tax and gratuity. Children under 3 are permitted to eat off their parent's plates.

There are three categories of seating. We were in the second category and had great seats. It seemed like there were some third category seats that I would've been disappointed if we had ended up with but since we didn't sit there, I can't really comment on how good the view was. Also, if you plan to use the dining plan, be aware that it will cost 2 (two) table service credits per person and will only allow you to have category two or three seating. If you want category one seating, you'll need to pay out of pocket.

To be honest, we enjoyed the Spirit of Aloha Luau but it isn't our favorite dinner show. We much prefer the other two shows but if you have a school-aged child, they'll have a great time.

Reintegration

2012-01-26T18:30:00.000-06:00

I'm staying VERY busy in anticipation of Joshua's return...it's still not so close I can feel it but I definitely see the light at the end of the tunnel. We've talked about visiting friends in Nashville, Houston and El Paso. We've talked about a trip to Great Wolfe Lodge. We've talked about family bike rides and camping trips. We've mostly talked about just turning off the phones and computers and staying home. It's going to be great.

That said, I'm realizing more now what people mean when they talk about some of the difficulties of reintegration. I'm not worried at this point...just more aware. Today, the boy came to me and said that he was excited for Daddy to come home and sleep in the boy's room with him just like the girl sleeps with me now (I co-sleep with the baby because I'm nursing and it's just what works for us). He even pointed out the fact that he has a second bed just for Daddy (bunk beds that we separated). I was able to brush him off and say that's silly-baby girl sleeps with Mommy because she's a baby and he's a big boy. I tried to remind him about before Joshua left and how at R&R he had his own bed and we had our own bed. And then I told him about all the big boy things he and Daddy will do like fishing and buying a big boy bike but I worry that the sibling rivalry we've somehow miraculously avoided until now will make an appearance.

I'm a little anxious about what it will be like to actually be a family of four together. Other than R&R, we've never parented two children and since R&R was at Disney World, it wasn't exactly a real life experience (which is what we were going for at the time). I have zero doubts that Joshua will step up and be the amazing Dad to both kids that he's always been for the boy. Seriously, he's awesome and it's totally natural. Kind of annoying really. I majored in child development and was a nanny for years...to kids ranging from two weeks to twelve years and for families with one kid, triplets or in one case, ten kids (yeah, ten...T-E-N!) and yet, it's not uncommon for Joshua to teach me a thing or two about parenting.

Like I said, I'm not really worried at this point, just more aware. I guess it's kind of like when you're pregnant and everyone decides that's the best time to start telling you all the pregnancy and birth horror stories they know. I've just been hearing some not so pleasant reintegration stories and I think I just need to treat them like I treated all the stories when I was pregnant. Ignore them. Prepare the best we can. Hope. Pray. And deal with whatever happens.

Sometimes Violence Is the Answer

2012-01-23T21:57:00.000-06:00

I've heard it said that there are no bad days...so long as you're alive and breathing under your own power, it's a good day. I disagree. There are days that just suck. Pain in the butt, Murphy's Law sort of days. Today tried to be one of those days.

I was prepared for today to be long. I had a ton of things to do and I knew I'd be out and about with the kids for at least 12 hours. Being out of the house in and of itself used to not be a big deal but alone with two small kids 12 hours can feel more like 12 days sometimes.

The first stop on our agenda was an eye appointment for me. It was desperately needed as the boy broke my only glasses and I'm down to just two sets of contacts left. Unfortunately the closest optometrist which will accept Tricare is 45 minutes away. So, I loaded the kids up and we were on our way...

Twenty minutes into our journey and we had an accident. Long story short...er...we were on a two lane, middle of nowhere highway/country road. The oncoming traffic (not very busy) had a shoulder but not much of one. On our side was a ditch from which Bambi jumped.

Stupid Bambi.

So in about .5 seconds I had to decide Bambi or on-coming traffic...which happened to be a GMC Sierra. Nine out of ten times Bambi would be dead right now and don't get me wrong, I didn't avoid Bambi because PETA wanted me to. I chose the on-coming traffic for three reasons...

1-about a year and a half ago my Aunt hit a deer and it was bad-really bad
2-the on-coming traffic wasn't right there...he had more space and time to react-not to mention a shoulder to go onto
and
3-if I hit Bambi I was almost certain we'd end up in the ditch, possibly rolling the truck because Bambi was baby Bambi...Bambi was Big Daddy Bambi.

Yeah, all that and a little prayer that the other guy was paying attention and could swerve in time went through my mind in about .5 seconds. Thankfully, he was paying attention and did swerve but he just couldn't get his truck over far enough and we side-swiped each other. Both our our driver-side mirrors are shot and the glass from his mirror shot back and embedded itself in the glass of his window. I'm pretty amazed my own window didn't shatter with how hard the mirror hit.

We exchanged insurance information but since I'm the one who crossed the center line, it's on me. It's the first time I've been in an accident that was my fault since I was a stupid teenager and the first time anything this scary has happened while I had kids with me.

I called my insurance agent (great guy btw) and tried repeatedly to get a hold of my husband. I tried texting and calling his Afghanistan phone, I emailed him on gmail, facebook emailed, facebook posted. All of which trying not to be like "OMG call me NOW!" and freak him out but firm enough that if he got it he would know to call right away because I was freaked out and all I wanted was for my husband to call me back. Which he did, three hours later. Granted-three hours in deployment time is less than nothing but it still sucked.

The rest of the day for the most part was unproductive and frustrating. The one highlight was visiting the Science Museum with a fellow deployment wife (different branch and different deployment but same frustrations) and her kids.

The real saving grace for my day was my second ever Krav Maga class. If you've never heard of it, basically it's a self-defense technique (and now fitness class) originated by the Israeli Defense Forces. Basically they teach you to use whatever you can and to hit as hard as you can without stopping until there's no longer a threat. It's fun and tonight I needed it. I hit so hard half of my knuckles are slightly bruised even with using grappling gloves and I'm pretty sure picking up my daughter tomorrow will hurt a lot but it was just what I needed to release the stress from the day.

Disney World-Let's Have a Drink

2012-01-23T09:06:00.000-06:00

Many of our friends are surprised by the fact that we go to Disney World as often as we go and usually it's because they're unaware of all the great adult options available. Granted, it's Disney World so yeah, there's a ton of kids and family friendly things to do but to be totally honest, we prefer to go without children. Yup. I'm nevergoing to be Mother-Of-The-Year so I don't mind confessing that I'd rather be at a children's paradise without my children.

One of our favorite things to do when child-free is drink. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a lush but I do enjoy a good cocktail. Good cocktails are much more easy to come by at Disney than you may think. Magic Kingdom is the only dry park (ironic considering they have the Pirates of the Caribbean). You can get a drink at both water parks(which seems a bit odd to me) and at just about any restaurant in Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot. Epcot really is the big one when it comes to drinking. One thing I look forward to every year (really, I swear I'm not a lush) is Disney's official Wine Walk. It's $20 for six 2oz tastings. The tastings are split evenly between three country pavilions-Germany, France and Italy and to be honest, in my experience Germany is the only pavilion that is a stickler on the 2oz amount...the other two countries are very generous. You can go to any one of the three countries and purchase the "passport" which is just a card that each country stamps when you've had their tastings. If you're a light weight like me, don't worry, you're not required to drink all six tastings in the same night. You can spread it out over the course of your trip-if you have park hopper tickets, it really works out great because you can spend the day doing whatever you like in any of the parks and then end it with a night cap in Epcot-just be sure to look into the park hours first. Whether or not you decide to buy the official wine walk, be sure to try the Rosa Regale in Italy (the official red wine for Italy on the Wine Walk). I'm not big into reds but it's a totally unique fizzy fun red that is superb. Of course the rest of the country pavilions have their own libations. If I was into beer, Germany would be the pavilion to go to. One of my annual must dos is to try a different sake each trip in the Japanese pavilion. The cast members (Disney's word for employee) there have taught me more about all the various versions of sake than I ever thought possible.

(my aunt and I enjoying the wine walk...we didn't get around to it until the last night of our vacation and ended up drinking all six tastings in about an hour and a half)

Also, if you do one of the three dinner shows-Hoop Dee Doo Musical Review, Spirit of Aloha Luau, or Mickey's Backyard BBQ, some alcohol (beer, sangria and sometimes wine) is included in the price of the meal and unlimited. If you're looking for high end wines, try one of the other signature restaurants such as Artist's Point in Wilderness Lodge or California Grill at the top of the Contemporary Resort (tip: book your dinner at California Grill for an hour before fireworks...usually 8pm...and you'll be able to watch the fireworks from the balcony of the restaurant while they broadcast the music and story just for you).

(my cousin and the drink he purchased at the Spirit of Aloha Luau...he got to keep the coconut monkey)

Last, if you're interested in drinking your way around the world, is the Food and Wine Festival scheduled this year from Sept 28th-Nov 11th. Disney brings in world renown chefs of all kinds and builds additional temporary pavilions which combine with their permanent countries to represent more than two dozen nationalities, cultures, cuisine, drinks and entertainment. There are mixology classes, cooking demonstrations from some of TV's most famous chefs, wine tastings and lots of live music. It's basically a 45 day party. Some of the classes, demonstrations and events will require a reservation and separate fee but we went for the first time this year and had a blast with just our regular park admission (best use of our dining plan snack credits ever-only on food, not permitted on alcohol but it's always good to have something more than just bubbly in the tummy). Stop at a DVC booth and pick up one of the free Food and Wine Festival Passports-they list all of the country pavilions and what food and beverages each station will have. We managed to try at least one thing from almost all of the countries represented. Be aware, however, that the food and wine festival does bring a ton of locals-especially on the weekends. It's a different atmosphere during those six weeks than we had ever experienced at Disney World...not better or worse, just different.

(our very first trip...before kids...the "glowtini" is a favorite-the plastic ice cube can be solid blue, flashing blue or flashing multi-color)

Most importantly, whether you have children with you or not, drink responsibly. Don't drink and drive, no matter how close your resort is and don't be obnoxious. It's the happiest place on earth-don't ruin it for someone else.

Mommy Dearest

2012-01-17T19:24:00.000-06:00

The boy has reached a new stage. He's starting to call me "Mom" instead of "Mommy." It's really out of no where. I haven't encouraged it and no one's made fun of him for using "mommy," it's just natural and I don't like it. It's too much of a symbol of his growing up.

So, forgive me, I'm going to have an obnoxious Mommy-moment and post pictures of my kids because they're the best kids ever.

Our Boy...

Our Girl...

OPSEC

2012-01-11T21:17:00.000-06:00

I've wanted to write a post about OPSEC for a little while now. For my civilian friends and family OPSEC is Operational Security. Basically, it's keeping vital information from getting into the wrong hands. Bits of information like troop size, training and movements...and more often for those of us left behind, it's information regarding when our loved ones are leaving or coming home (ie: "yay, my husband will be home in [insert any specific amount of time]!"). It may seem like everyday information worthy of a facebook update. In fact, it's common to see civilian friends posting about their upcoming family vacation or their husband's business trip but when it involves the military, when it's R&R, training or deployment, it's an OPSEC violation and it needs to stop.

The closer we get to homecoming the easier it would be to forget OPSEC in our eager anticipation. I said that I've wanted to write about this for a while and there were a couple specific OPSEC violations that were bugging me but to be honest, I didn't want to be "that" wife. The one who's getting onto everyone for breaking the rules...it kind of feels like the grown up equivalent of the kid in class who would remind the teacher that she forgot to assign homework. But the fact is OPSEC violations are deadly serious. You don't know who's listening or reading what you're saying. You don't know what their intentions are.

The old saying "loose lips sink ships" is the heart of OPSEC. I can't tell you that every facebook or blog post with an OPSEC violation will get someone hurt or ruin a mission but the fact is, every one of them has the potential to get someone hurt or ruin a mission. Also, I can tell you that when OPSEC violations occur, deployments can change...as in they leave home early or stay away longer.

If keeping the troops safe, missions secure and deployments from being extended aren't enough reasons, OPSEC is there to protect those of us at home too. Last fall, a couple men in the Oklahoma City area dressed in ACUs and tried to con the family of a Navy service member who was away on deployment. These men claimed to be Army Casualty Notification Officers and told the Navy Wife that her husband had been killed. They then tried to get her to sign some papers. She refused and called the base her husband was stationed out of to learn he was alive and well. To my knowledge, the men were never arrested. The cruel hoax was a gut check for all of us who were in the midst of deployment when it happened. It's another reason for us to be vigilant when we're posting online or in the check out line and someone asks just one too many questions. It's why OPSEC matters at home too.

Feelin' Crafty

2012-01-10T17:35:00.000-06:00

The longer this deployment lasts (or maybe it's just the older I get) the more I'm into all things crafty. There's so many different things you can create with a sewing machine, hot glue gun and a little bit of time...so many, in fact, I'm avoiding Pinterest because it would become a total time suck. Anyway, my most recent crafty adventures are all about homemade sew-on appliques. I started with a shirt for the boy...

(sorry about the pic quality...it's from my phone)

After the boy's shirt I moved onto something for me...an "Army Wife" hat...

And because I like to wear hats all the time (read:I don't like and am terrible at doing my hair) I made a second hat that I think I like even more than the first...

BOOMER SOONER!

Disney World In The Rain

2012-01-09T11:14:00.000-06:00

(as long as there's no lightening, the water parks are a great place to go on a rainy day...you're getting wet anyway)

Anyone who's been to Florida for any length of time will tell you, it rains. Often it's just a 30 minute shower in the afternoon but there are times when the rain just doesn't seem to end.

Some of the more common questions I get when people are planning their first trip to Disney World revolve around hurricanes and the question of when is hurricane season. It officially runs from June 1st through November 30th but the "peak season" is from August to October with 96% of the major hurricane days. And the pinnacle of that season is early to mid-September...but don't let that stop you from planning a trip during those dates. In fact, we prefer to go mid-September because the crowd levels are lowest and outside a bit of rain here and there the weather is great.

Keep in mind that Disney World has only shut down completely due to hurricane weather twice. Ever. Once in 2004 and once in 2005. If you plan to go during the hurricane season, there's a couple things you can do to ensure you have the best possible vacation. First, and probably most importantly, look into travel insurance. If you book your trip through Disney-either online or via phone, they will gladly add travel insurance to your package. Secondly, plan. Be aware of the attractions and activities you can do if you're caught in an unending rain.

Something you may want to do even before it rains is try to do all the "must-dos" for your group that are outdoor and will naturally shut down (ie Big Thunder Railroad...Expedition Everest...etc) during a storm so that if, like on our most recent trip, your last day is a monster storm, you won't have missed anything. For the record, this most recent trip of ours is the ONLY one we've ever had where the rain didn't let up after a little bit of time...it just rained and rained and rained...it was kind of metaphoric since it was also the last day of Joshua's R&R and we had to go back to deployment life.

If it's just another 30 minute Florida afternoon storm, consider doing something like the Hall of Presidents in Magic Kingdom or Finding Nemo Musical in Animal Kingdom to pass the time. Just remember to cover your stroller before you leave it so the kiddos won't have to come out to a wet stroller.

One of our favorite rainy day activities is the Character Meet and Greet inside Epcot. If it looks like a storm won't let up, Disney will bring in extra characters and put them in the hallway. Generally, the fab five...Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, and Donald are there but Disney will add Chip and Dale, Daisy and even some of the Princesses to help give the guests something to do. We had a great time playing with the characters on our last day when everything else was either a 60 minute wait or shut down due to the rain. We bought a cheap football from Walmart, threw it in an "ice bag" from the resort room and had all the characters sign it. The "ice bag" kept the signatures from smudging in the rain and gave the characters something to do with the kids...Goofy even spent about 5 minutes playing catch with the boy and another kiddo who was in line behind us.

Running from indoor attraction to indoor attraction and waiting in longer-than-usual lines is not as easy when totting small kids. Instead, you may want to head over to Downtown Disney. You can let the kids go crazy inside Disney Quest-an indoor, interactive Theme Park with five floors of virtual reality, state-of-the-art 3D games divided into four zones: explore, create, score and replay. It would be easy to classify Disney Quest as an arcade but there's so much more to it than that and unlike an arcade, almost all the games and attractions are free (with paid admission...which btw, comes included in a water parks and more option on your Disney ticket package). If you are traveling with little ones, the 4th floor is particularly geared toward them and also has a dining area with booths which I can attest are great for nursing. One caveat, Disney Quest, by it's nature is loud and full of bright flashing lights. It is not something I would recommend for children with autism or a seizure disorder. The other big draw for Downtown Disney is the AMC Downtown Disney Theatres. If you've never tried a "dine-in" theater before, this is a great one...of course, they also have showings without the "dine-in" option.

One of the biggest disappointments that a rainy day will bring is if the nightly fireworks and light shows, Wishes in Magic Kingdom, IllumiNations in Epcot and Fantasmic in Hollywood Studios are canceled. But fear not, there are other fun things to do. One of our favorites (Weds-Sat nights) is at Disney's Port Orleans Riverside Resort. Inside the lounge is a family-friendly piano entertainer/comedian Bob Jackson...better known to us as Piano Bob. The show starts at 8:30pm and features great sing-alongs for the entire family. Bob manages to get everyone from 6 to 86 involved. It's a great place to sit, have a drink and laugh with friends and family...or at friends and family as is often the case. Please note that I do have photos of our great times at various Piano Bob shows over the years but I'm holding onto those for future blackmail purposes.

All in all, it's disappointing when rain invades your Disney World vacation but it doesn't have to ruin the fun. Have a great time and as always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Sunday Morning

2012-01-08T09:57:00.002-06:00

I miss our Sunday mornings. This morning I woke up to realize that there's a limited number of Sunday mornings left until Joshua gets home. Holding onto that fact...he's going to be home soon...is like holding onto a life preserver. We've made it over ten months now but it's been just "making it." It hasn't been the life we had before he left or the life we'll have when he returns. It's been an interim of survival. There have been happy moments and good memories but nothing compared to what a simple Sunday morning will be when he's home...

As the official night owl of the family, I'll sleep in and wake up to the sounds and smells of Joshua cooking the only meal which has always been his...homemade waffles, scrambled eggs and turkey bacon. The boy will no doubt be on a chair "helping" while our little princess will be in her high chair watching everything. I'll take two waffles but struggle to finish just one because as yummy as they are, I can never eat very much that early in the day. Joshua will laugh at me but then finish my plate without complaint. Then, he and I will snuggle on the couch and watch the CBS Sunday Morning News with Charles Osgood while the kids play (hopefully in another room...or quietly...both would be awesome but I'm trying to be realistic). We'll stay on the couch up until the last possible moment and then the madness will set in as we try to get dressed, get the kids dressed and make it on time to the late service at church.

It probably sounds boring to most people but it's one of the things I miss and look forward to most. In the meantime, the boy and I are having toaster strudels and pre-cut grapefruit for breakfast, I'm DVR-ing the Sunday Morning News and yet we're still going to have madness as I try to get dressed, get the kids dressed and make it on time to the late service at church.

New Design! - Check It Out!!!

2012-01-04T11:24:00.000-06:00

While the kids and I were down for the count with the flu, my little blog was getting redesigned. I ordered a simple package from Dirt and Lace Designs and I love it. I love it so much that I suspect I'm going to upgrade to a deluxe package sooner rather than later...well, as soon as I can convince Joshua that it's a good idea.

I heard about Dirt and Lace Designs from my very good (real life and blogging) friend JG at Me and My SoldierMan who has used the designer in the past and plans to do so again.

To be honest, I hated all the previous freebie templates and the one attempt I made at design was a total fail. I'm digitally challenged but I wanted a cute blog...not because I'm trying to generate more traffic, or get more followers...that's not my goal with blogging. I'll admit, it is an ego boost when someone out of the blue tells me they read my blog but blogging for me is an outlet-a way to keep my sanity while dealing with the insanity that military life and kids bring.

Speaking of insanity...I'm pretty sure my son just rode the dog down the stairs. Fabulous.

Blog Interrupted

2012-01-02T09:10:00.001-06:00

I planned on resuming my weekly Disney blog post today but alas, the flu has invaded our home and I didn't write this week's post ahead of time as I had intended so if anyone out there was looking forward to today's post, I apologize. I'll be back with the weekly Disney post next week...Disney World In The Rain-what you can do at Disney World when fun in the sun isn't an option.

Here's hoping the kids and I will be able to return to the land of the living again soon.

PS>sorry Joshua for the phone call last night. I didn't mean to be a total grinch...actually I was something else but it ends in "ch" too. We miss and love you to the moon and back.

Six Years Down...Fifty Four To Go

2011-12-31T08:43:00.001-06:00

Six years ago I told my best friend I'd be with him forever...actually I specifically never used the word forever because I'm a commitment-phobe and the idea of forever gave me palpitations. Forever was of course implied in the vows but I very specifically told my now husband beforehand that I could only promise 60 years and we'll do sort of a year-to-year lease option after that.

Somehow what I had intended to be a slightly sappy, cute little post about my husband and our anniversary has gone badly off course. So, I guess I'll just make it short and sweet...

Joshua understands my fears, my failures, my weaknesses and loves me anyway. He says the sarcastic things I think but does it so masterfully that the people it's directed towards, love him that much more for it. He's the best father any kid could have. He takes care of me when I'm sick and doesn't hold it against me that I tell him to suck it up when he's sick. He comes across as the mean one and lets me be the nice one (shh, it's a secret...he's a marshmallow-I'm the mean one). He lets me hold the remote. He shares my ridiculous obsession with all things Disney and graciously cooperates when I'm constantly saying that I want to stop and take a picture...over and over when most of the time he'd rather be doing just about anything in that moment other than smiling and pinning the children in their places while I click away. He supports my decision to stay home and would equally support me if I chose to go back to work. He cuddles up with me and watches chick flicks without complaint (even the ones he's not secretly excited about too).

He's my best friend and I miss him.

Ok. Sappy moment over.

Post-Christmas Wrap Up

2011-12-28T12:10:00.001-06:00

This is the obligatory recount of the Christmas highlights. We went up to my mom and step-dad's house for a long weekend. Did some shopping. Got to see my step-brothers...always fun. Opened some presents. Ate some good food. Kids caught Grandma's winter crud.

Christmas Eve

Christmas morning-the boy is helping his sister open her new toys and stuff

The boy got a camera of his own...it's a Fisher Price and it takes really amazing video but the still picture quality is lacking (to say the least)

We're home again and I think the boy is on the upswing of the winter crud...I believe this because he invaded MY Christmas box of chocolates while I was out of the kitchen.

His mug shot.

Abandoned by Technology

2011-12-21T10:13:00.001-06:00

This deployment has brought with it a technological curse. Since Joshua left in February, here's a list of the things which have either become possessed or straight up died on me...in no particular order...

Waffle Maker

Laptop-only briefly until the Laptop Dr could fix it-Thank God!

Breast Pump

Cell phone-actually 2 cell phones, 3 different times

Washing Machine

Battery in my truck

Fuse Box-for the house...meaning no power to two rooms until it was fixed

Address Book-file on computer

DVD player in the truck-on the drive back from Florida

Laptop Cooling Thing-not the internal fan but the thing it sits on and has a fan that is powered by the laptop via USB (made a funny/slightly terrifying smell when it died)

iPod Shuffle

Dishwasher

And most recently...as in yesterday, my printer.

I'm not sure if that's an excessive amount, given that it's been 10 months and I'm sure most, if not all of these mini-disasters would have happened anyway but I married Joshua for two big reasons (other than the whole I love him and want to spend my life with him thing)...

A-he's tall...you know, so he can reach things that I can't and I can breed height back into my gene pool

and

B-he can fix just about anything...sure, I know how to fix a flat tire and if I absolutely had to, I could even change my own oil...probably...but that's just it, I married Joshua so I would never have to do anything remotely resembling mechanical/electrical work.

So, I'm counting the days and praying nothing else breaks between now and when Joshua comes home because at this point, I'll most likely leave anything that abandons me for him to fix.

Disney World with Infants/Small Children Part 2

2011-12-19T13:57:00.005-06:00

Since the premier issue of my little weekly Disney planning posts, Disney World with Infants/Small Children was such a great success and I've thought of a few additional tips, I've decided to write a sequel. So let's just jump in...

One of the biggest concerns about babies at Disney World is how to tour the parks. Strollers are a must and I covered your options and my opinion on renting vs bringing your own stroller in the first edition but strollers are just one part of the equation. Many of the attractions will allow your little one...no matter how little so the question becomes...wake the sleeping baby from the stroller or find another solution. If you still are able to use an infant car seat carrier, it's a great option...especially if you have a travel system stroller and it just snaps into the stroller frame or toddler seat. An even better option is if your stroller has a bassinet that attaches and detatches from the stroller. Both are great options especially at restaurants BUT, you should know that there are some attractions which will allow the baby but not in an infant carrier or bassinet. They will, however, allow you to "wear" your baby onto the attraction in either a wrap or snugli style baby carrier (not to be confused with the infant car seat carrier).

(wrap style...which I prefer)

(snugli style...which my husband prefers...I just grabbed the first pic with our snugli, obviously you would wear the child in front on any attraction)

I know several moms who prefer the sling style carrier. Unfortunately, there are less attractions which will allow a sling-only style carrier because several require that you either hold the baby or the baby be upright and facing out. The reasons for the various touring options are as many as the attractions themselves...some for instance, require you to sit with a bar down (Peter Pan) which would make it all but impossible to have the baby in any other way but upright and facing out. Other factors like the size of the seating in attractions like Dumbo make it impossible to bring an infant car seat carrier onto the ride.

Confused yet?

At the bottom of this post, I'm going to list all of the rides which will allow you to take baby on and in what manner Disney will allow it.

Moving on, another big issue is restaurants. If you're going to a sit down table service meal and need to make a reservation (always my recommendation at the sit down restaurants), be sure to mention the baby when you call to book and if the baby will be in a high chair. If you're planning on using an infant car seat carrier, a few of the restaurants have the slings which are designed to hold infant car seats but if they don't, the high chairs they have are designed to be flipped upside down and have straps to attach the car seat to the high chair frame. If your baby isn't in an infant carrier but falls asleep in the stroller before your meal, just mention it to the hostess and they'll usually make an exception to allow you to bring your stroller in and place it next to the table if at all possible. Lastly, when it comes to babies at Disney and dining, if your baby is too big for (or you don't use) a bassinet or an infant car seat carrier but he or she isn't big enough or strong enough yet to sit in a high chair on their own, you may want to consider bringing a bumbo seat. I know it's a huge thing to add to the mix but if you have a good size stroller basket and you really don't want to have to take turns holding the baby during the meal, it's an option-even just on days when you have a dining reservation. Now, of course, that's all mostly for the sit down, table service meals. Almost all of the counter service restaurants (go to my post on the Disney Dining Plan to read more about the differences between the various types of restaurants at Disney World) will allow you to bring your stroller into the restaurant.

One of the biggest issues you will face with an infant or small child is the weather. Weather.com will give you a good idea of what to expect...both a 10 day forecast and an annual average so that you can tentatively plan ahead. One option in the summertime is a stroller fan. They can attach to just about any stroller, car seat or bassinet and can keep baby much cooler. Of course, if you forget your stroller fan, Disney sells a Mickey Mouse version that offers pretty decent air flow although the battery life could be better. I don't know how much they are because the one we have was a gift from my aunt but I would hazard to guess it was probably around $30 (yup, Disney pricing hurts). If you go in the hottest part of summer, however, even the best fan won't do much more than blow hot air so a misting fan may be a better option. Just fyi: we tried the cooling pads you can buy at Walgreens...didn't help our kids in the slightest. Might work for someone else or if it's used in less extreme circumstances-we're in the parks usually 10-12 hours a day.

(photo: disboards.com ...we have the same exact fan but it's December so ours is packed away in a summer box in the back of my son's closet)

Everyone knows sun is an issue when you go to Florida (sun shades for strollers are a great option if your stroller doesn't have much of one already) but rain is often overlooked especially if you bring your own stroller. Bring a rain cover unless you're going to rent a stroller from an outside company which will allow you to also rent a rain cover. If you forget, Disney DOES NOT sell or rent stroller covers. They do, however, sell ponchos and you can always buy an adult poncho and make it work with your stroller.

Finally, if you have a little daredevil like we do, waiting for him to reach that all important 40 inch mark for most of Disney's roller coasters is painful. Thankfully, Disney has a kiddie coaster in Magic Kingdom called Goofy's Barnstormer. It has a height requirement of only 35 inches and our son was able to ride it for the first time just after he turned 2 yrs old. Unfortunately, Goofy's Barnstormer is currently down for the big Fantasyland expansion. It is scheduled to reopen in late 2012 and feature Goofy as The Great Goofini.

Below is a list of the Disney attractions which will allow babies and/or small chrildren:

Magic Kingdom:

In any form outside of the stroller...held in arms, car seat carrier, bassinet, wrap or snugli carrier:

Enchanted Tiki Room

Carousel of Progress

Monster's Inc Laugh Floor

Wrap, snugli carrier or held in arms:

Jungle Cruise

Hall of Presidents

Mickey's PhilharMagic

Magic Carpets of Aladdin

Pirates of the Caribbean

Haunted Mansion (wrap/carrier-upright and facing out or held)

Dumbo

It's A Small World

Mad Tea Party (although I wouldn't recommend it for the smallest of babies)

Snow White's Scary Adventure

Peter Pan's Flight (wrap/carrier-upright and facing out or held)

Prince Charming Carousel

Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin (wrap/carrier-upright and facing out or held)

Unknown (sorry, I don't know all the attraction regulations):

Walt Disney World Railroad (strollers are not allowed)

Swiss Family Tree House (strollers are not allowed)

Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh

Astro Orbiter (although it's very similar to Dumbo so I would assume the same rules apply)

Tomorrowland Transit Authority People Mover

Country Bear Jamboree

Epcot:

Keep in mind that strollers are welcome inside Innoventions East and West as well as all of the various country pavilion shops of World Showcase. Italy, Germany, Japan and the UK pavilions don't have specific attractions which wouldn't allow a stroller.

In any form outside of the stroller...held in arms, car seat carrier, bassinet, wrap or snugli carrier:

Turtle Talk with Crush

China, America, Morocco, France, and Canada pavilions have movie presentations which give you a brief but fascinating look into each country's history as well as what modern life there is like.

Wrap, snugli carrier or held in arms:

Journey in Imagination with Figment

Spaceship Earth

Finding Nemo Ride (upright and facing out...brings you into The Seas Pavilion)

Living with the Land

The Circle of Life

Universe of Energy (just a warning, the show lasts 45 minutes)

Gran Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros-Mexican Pavilion attraction-boat ride

Maelstorm-Norway Pavilion attraction-boat ride

Unknown:

Captain EO

Hollywood Studios:

In any form outside of the stroller...held in arms, car seat carrier, bassinet, wrap or snugli carrier:

Beauty and the Beast

Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular

Lights Motors Action Extreme Stunt Show

Wrap, snugli carrier or held in arms:

The Great Movie Ride

Backlot Tour

Muppet Vision 3D

Toy Story Midway Mania

Unknown:

American Idol Experience (although I would assume you could bring the baby inside in any form)

Sounds Dangerous

Voyage of the Little Mermaid

Animal Kingdom:

Keep in mind that the Pagini Forest Exploration Trail and the Maharajah Jungle Trek allow you to take your stroller with you.

In any form outside of the stroller...held in arms, car seat carrier, bassinet, wrap or snugli carrier:

Festival of the Lion King

Flights of Wonder

Finding Nemo The Musical

Wrap, snugli carrier or held in arms:

It's Tough to Be a Bug

Kilimanjaro Safari (wrap/carrier-upright and facing out or held)

As always, if you have any questions, feel free to ask. I may not know the answer but I usually know how to find out.

No More Grinch

2011-12-16T10:05:00.002-06:00

I've been in a funk lately and try as I might, I couldn't shake it. I couldn't will myself out of it. Which, for me, is very humbling because I see it as a weakness. It wasn't depression in the most dramatic sense, it was heart ache at the season and all that we're missing compounded with well-intended, ignorant people. The kind of people who think the song I'll Be Home For Christmas is a sweet song that should cheer me up...for the record, it's not sweet. It's more like soul-crushing.

But, then a friend emailed me (thanks again) and shared with me what helped her through her fiance's recent deployment. It wasn't the kind of email that gave me a three step solution to my problem or told me what I should be doing. It was just her experience and her recognition of how hard it can be during the holidays. I guess, in a sense, it reminded me that I'm not the only one doing this. It's been done since the beginning of time and the first war began.

Don't get me wrong, my funk wasn't a pity-party where I thought I was the only one having to deal with a difficult situation. It was just pain. It's so easy to get caught up in pain and isolation and allow it to pull you down even more, which in the end, just causes more pain and more isolation.

So, I'm going to try harder to remember that it's almost over, I'm not alone and maybe I'll manage to be a little less Grinch-y. In fact, we're going to a holiday parade this evening and after we'll probably drive around looking at lights. In fact, it could be fun to come up with ideas of what I want Joshua to do with our lights next year...because we will be going BIG next year with our lights.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

2011-12-15T13:16:00.001-06:00

A commercial came on (which is a rare event in our house-usually the boy is only allowed to watch movies or dvr'd TV and I never have time to watch TV live) and the boy's reaction took me by surprise. He was watching Beauty and The Beast live on the Disney Channel. The commercial was for the Joining Forces Campaign with the first lady and a couple Disney stars-I have no idea who they are...some teeny bopper boy band or Hannah Montana actors-is that even still on?-I'm not sure but thankfully we're not at that stage yet so I don't have to know such things.

I tried to find a youtube clip of the commercial so you could see it but I couldn't find it. Most of the commercial was the two young Disney stars talking about what it's like to grow up in a military family...the good and some of the bad. Mrs. Obama then made her plea to go to the White House's Joining Forces website.

Anyway, the boy was glued to the TV and I could see the wheels turning so when the commercial ended, I paused the TV and waited for him to say whatever it was that he needed to say.

Boy: "I don't like that."

Me: "Ok...what don't you like?"

Boy: "Their Daddy was gone."

Me: "Yes. Their Daddy was a soldier like your Daddy. They're a military family and sometimes military families like us have to be away from each other."

Boy: "I don't want to do that anymore."

Me: "Me neither little man. What would make you feel better?"

Boy: "Popcorn chicken."

Me: "That I can do."

So that's what we did. Sometimes I think I forget how hard this is on the boy because he's handled it so well. It's easy to mistake his ability to deal with the deployment as him being ok with the deployment. Other times I think I delude myself into believing he doesn't understand it when I know even without days like today that he understands it better than I do sometimes. He knew what would make him feel better and he let it work. We had popcorn chicken and now, he's scaring off an imaginary dinosaur from attacking his sister.

I Surrender

2011-12-14T19:34:00.000-06:00

I'm waving the white flag...at least for the rest of this month. Deployment has won. There's just too many holidays...too many reminders of how much it sucks to be apart.

Hanukkah starts in less than a week.

Joshua's birthday is the 22nd.

Christmas (yes, we celebrate both Hanukkah and Christmas) at my family's house.

New Year's Eve...which happens to also be our anniversary (looking back, we really didn't think that one through).

Any other year, it's stressful...so much to do in such a short amount of time but it's fun. It's so full of family time and love and joy.

This year, it's so hard to not be a Grinch. Just ask our local post office employee...I don't know his name but by now he's come to know us fairly well with all the times we've gone in to send Joshua boxes. The last time I went in, he congratulated me and asked if I was excited. I was confused and then he went on to say that I must be excited because my husband is coming home soon. I started to respond that it's still a few months away (nothing more specific than that per OPSEC and the fact that we don't even know much more than that) but yeah, it's getting closer when he cut me off to inform me that ALL the troops would be home by the end of the year. He heard it on the news.

And then it clicked.

This man, who knows my husband is in Afghanistan...who moments before had stamped the customs paperwork for the box I was sending to Afghanistan was excited because troops are leaving Iraq. He didn't understand that there are two wars. Two battlefields. Two. All he knew was the news reported troops coming home.

My first reaction was nausea at the heart wrenching reminder that we still have months to go. My second was a feeling of being totally and completely alone. Granted, we have our friends, family and the military community but outside of that, it often feels like no one cares. Finally, I was angry that this man and so many others like him live their lives blissfully ignorant.

I'm proud to say that I kept my composure. I didn't throw up, cry or yell at him. I just curtly replied that the troops in Iraq will be home shortly but the troops in Afghanistan continue to fight. In the end, that's all that really matters. My husband is still in Afghanistan so this year, we'll celebrate Hanukkah, his birthday, Christmas, New Year's and our anniversary without him. It's going to be eleven days that suck. I'm proud of my husband and what he's doing. I know I can't make him come home earlier but I really hope January 2nd gets here fast so at least we'll be done with the holidays.

Disney World - Fireworks

2011-12-12T08:11:00.005-06:00

Three of the four main theme parks have nighttime fireworks/light shows. Animal Kingdom does not do fireworks or light shows and often is the first park to close...sometimes as early as 5pm depending on what time of year (a big reason I always recommend park hopper tickets...you can spend all day in Animal Kingdom and then hop over to any of the other parks for dinner and fireworks. Magic Kingdom and Epcot's shows are nightly but the Hollywood Studios show is only held two or three nights a week based on park hours so be sure to look up the show times before you go. WDW Entertainment is a great place to look up show times for an upcoming trip.

Magic Kingdom

Magic Kingdom's fireworks show is called Wishes and has been the fireworks show for Magic Kingdom since 2003. Before Wishes, Magic Kingdom had a show called Fantasy in the Sky which was preformed nightly for almost 30 years. There are certain times of the year such as the 4th of July and New Years when an extended version (more fireworks) are preformed. Also, Disney has a few specific nights leading up to both Halloween and Christmas when a totally different show will be preformed. Both the Halloween and Christmas shows are part of what Disney calls "hard-ticketed" events...meaning that entrance to the park starting usually at 7pm and going until midnight requires a separate special ticket to either the Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party or Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party.

But, the vast majority of the year, Magic Kingdom is home to Wishes. The show lasts for 12 minutes (although we've always thought it felt much longer because it's so spectacular). Narrated by Jiminy Cricket and with the help of classic Disney songs and character voices, Wishes isn't just fireworks...it's fireworks, lights, and music coming together to tell the story of wishes coming true.

Check the times guide when you first enter the park but more often than not, Wishes starts at 9pm...which means you should be wherever you plan to watch it by 8:30pm if not earlier. We always like to sit in front of the Castle by the statue of Mickey and Walt so we can see (SPOILER ALERT) Tinker Bell fly down from the Castle. Wherever you are in the park, you'll be able to hear the Wishes music and probably see at least some of the fireworks. One year, Joshua and I happened to be riding Big Thunder Railroad (my favorite ride) when Wishes began. Another year, we were taking the boy on Dumbo when it started.

Little known facts:

Wishes...

*Has 557 fireworks firing cues and 655 individual pieces of pyrotechnics

*Uses 15 songs from 10 different Disney movies

*Used the same fireworks designer, Eric Tucker and the same show director, Steven Davison as Epcot's IllumiNations: A Reflection of Earth

*Features the voices of...Jiminy Cricket, Snow White and the Evil Queen, Aladdin and the Genie, Cinderella, Ariel, and Peter Pan

(from behind the Castle...after Wishes began while we were on Dumbo)

Epcot

Epcot doesn't just have a fireworks show. Epcot has an LED, laser light and fireworks show that is absolutely amazing call IllumiNations: A Reflection of Earth. IllumiNations is a 13 minute show that starts with fireworks and a grand explosion over the lagoon...the smoke from which is used to help illuminate the laser lights which shoot out from all of the country pavilions that surround the lagoon. Slowly a giant globe of LED lights floats out into the center of the lagoon and lights up to show video images from around the world. IllumiNations also usually starts at 9pm so be sure to find your spot by 8:30pm...earlier if it's a particularly busy day in the park. We prefer the little bridge in front of the Italian pavilion but since that area is frequently used for private events (wedding receptions and the like), we also really enjoy the walkway between the UK and French pavilions but we don't mind waiting for the crowds to thin out before we leave. If you're wanting to get to your car or the buses as soon as possible after the show, be sure to be on the other side of the lagoon...closer to the Canadian or Mexican pavilions.

Little known facts:

IllumiNations:

*Uses the world's first spherical video display system covered in 15,000 LED lights

*Uses laser lights and per FAA regulations, Disney is required to notify the Orlando International Airport every night prior to the show so that air traffic controllers can advice and direct airplanes accordingly

*Has 67 different computers in 40 different locations controlling the show

(photo: Walt Disney Company)

Hollywood Studios

Hollywood Studios doesn't just do a fireworks or light show...it does a nightly 25 minute extravaganza called Fantasmic. The show takes place inside the Hollywood Hills Amphitheater...just go towards the Tower of Terror and the entrance will be on your right. During busier times of year, Fantasmic will have two showings in one night. The second showing is almost always less busy. The ampitheater holds 6,500 sitting guests and up to 2,500 standing guests. We have gone at the slowest, least crowded times of year and still have yet to see a Fantasmic show where they didn't run out of sitting room. Arriving 30 minutes early is a necessity...45-60 minutes early would be better if you want the closest seats.

The show starts out with Mickey falling asleep. His dream starts out filled with animated fountains and wonderfully magical moments including three huge "water screens." Disney projects video clips on the water screens that correspond with the story and music. The show takes a dark turn when villains invade Mickey's dream including a giant snake, the evil queen and a black dragon. It can be frightening for small children but if they stick with it, Mickey triumphs over evil.

There really isn't a bad seat in the house but if you don't want to risk having to stand and don't want to arrive early to the show, consider purchasing the Fantasmic Dinner Package...it includes dinner at either Mama Melrose ($32.99 adults/11.99 children) or at Hollywood & Vine ($26.99 adults/$13.99 children) and reserved seating at Fantasmic. Also if you're on the Disney Dining Plan, you can use dining credits for the package at no extra charge.

Little known facts:

Fantasmic:

*Is held on an island stage with a 59 foot man made mountain surrounded by a moat that holds 1.9 million gallons of water

*Has a fire breathing dragon which rises 50 feet into the air and has a 50 foot wing span

*Originated in Disneyland and although the shows are very similar, there are a few differences including incorporating scenes from The Lion King, Pocahontas, Hercules and Mulan

(photo: Disneyworld.disney.go)

(photo: diszine.com)

DO NOT SIGN UP WITH SPRINT

2011-12-10T10:29:00.001-06:00

I don't like to blog on the weekend but this weekend I'm dealing with two sick kids alone and I've missed yet another phone call from Joshua because my phone isn't working properly...again. It's a replacement phone. The same exact model as the first...Samsung Instinct. DO NOT BUY THE SAMSUNG INSTINCT.

Long story short, I desperately want to upgrade and although Sprint, for years, has allowed the primary user to upgrade annually instead of every other year, this year, it ended. Actually, the program doesn't officially end until the end of this month and I should have been able to upgrade my phone 3 days ago but somehow in Sprint world...not ending the program doesn't mean you can actually still get the program benefits...figure that one out. I tried calling account services, they told me I have to wait until October for the upgrade credit or I could cancel our account and go elsewhere...great customer retention program. I even asked Joshua to call because let's face it, sometimes a man's voice will get more respect and a better response than a woman's. Instead, they were straight rude to him.

He was calling from Afghanistan and they were rude to him. It boggles my mind.

So now, we're trying to get an exact amount of what it would cost to cancel and go elsewhere since that seems to be what they want from us...surprising since we've had service in good standing with Sprint for nearly 8 years.

Basically what I'm saying...to anyone that will listen...is that if you're just starting out and want a cell phone...AVOID SPRINT. GO ANYWHERE ELSE. The unlimited data plans, the coverage, none of it matters if the phone you're using is a piece of crap and you miss calls left and right.

Lying Kills

2011-12-07T09:24:00.001-06:00

The times in my life when I've been most hurt (outside of miscarriages) have been direct results of a lie. Sometimes, I'm ashamed to admit, even lies of my own. It's changed me. It's changed how I view lying and the kind of friend, daughter, sister, and wife I am. I've always considered myself at least reasonably non-judgmental...mostly because I've done so much wrong in my own life that to judge others for their failures would be the very definition of hypocrisy. That said, I cannot stand by and say or at least feel nothing when I know someone is lying. Not just leaving out part of a story but straight up, pants on fire lying. It just gets under my skin and reminds me of all the times a lie has hurt me. I recently lost a friend...no, she didn't die. We disagreed on a fairly inconsequential issue. She took offense at my position and lashed out. When I tried to discuss it, she lied and claimed her attack (for lack of a better word) was directed at someone else. I won't go into all the details because it doesn't matter but I know for a fact that she lied to me. She wouldn't own her words and now I grieve the friendship we could have had.

Disney World's Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique

2011-12-05T10:03:00.002-06:00

I cannot wait for my daughter to be three years old and the Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique is a big reason why. So far, we have not yet had the pleasure of seeing the Fairy Godmothers transform little girls into the beautiful Princesses that they truly are but we have several family and friends who have done it. If you have a little girl who tends to be on the shy side, you may want to go with The Pirate's League instead because she can get a Pirate Empress makeover and it might be a little less overwhelming. My cousin's daughter has done the BBB twice now. The first time she was five and enjoyed it but all the attention was a bit much for her at the time. She went back this year at seven years old and LOVED it. Disney World has introduced a Knight Package to the BBB options but it is still primarily the "girl" spot.

Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique

WHERE: There are two locations. The "must-have" location is INSIDE CINDERELLA'S CASTLE in Magic Kingdom...yup, inside the castle. To say this location is popular would be a massive understatement. Reservations are taken up to 180 days in advance by calling 407-WDW-STYL and I would highly recommend calling 180 days in advance if you know it's something your princess will want to do. The second location is at Downtown Disney and although reservations are also recommended for this location, if you're already in the parks and/or you decide last minute that your princess wants a make-over, the Downtown location is more likely to have an opening.

WHO: Children 3-12yrs

PACKAGE DETAILS: Each of the princess packages includes make up and hair styling...

*3 styles to chose from:

(not my picture...Disney promo pic)

Fairytale Princess-hair is swooped up into a bun with a rhinestone tiara, crystal hairpin and fairy dust/confetti glitter

(not my picture...Disney promo pic))

Disney Diva-clip in hair extensions that match your princess's own hair color with regal clips and fairy dust/confetti glitter (this style does not come with a tiara but many girls opt to add one one for an additional fee-you can also bring your own tiara from home if there's a specific one your princess likes or you want to save some money)

(not my pic)

Pop Princess-clip in hair extensions that are brightly colored with big bright hair clips and fairy dust/confetti glitter

Coach Package: Hair styling, sash and shimmering makeup $49.95+tax

Crown Package: Hair styling, sash, makeup and nail polish $54.95+tax

Castle Package: Hair styling, sash, makeup, nail polish, an imaging packing which includes one 6" x 8" and four 4" x 6" photos in a princess themed photo holder, and a complete costume with dress, shoes, crown and wand...current costume options: Ariel-mermaid, Ariel-bridal gown, Cinderella, Snow White, Aurora, Belle, Jasmine, Tiana, Tinkerbell, and Rapunzel...$189.95-$239.95+tax (prices vary based on costume of choice)

Knight Package: If you don't want to leave your little boy out, the BBB offers this package which includes crazy colored gel either in a stenciled design or just spiked on top with confetti, a sword and shield $14.95+tax

*If your prince wants the cool hair style but doesn't care about the sword and shield, call 407-WDW-7529 also to book a reservation at the Harmony Barber Shop. It's only $7+tax and the shop is located on Main Street next to the fire station. Harmony Barber Shop will take walk ins and it's usually not too hard to get in but without a reservation, you will have to wait because it is a popular place for baby's first hair cuts.

(our son at the Harmony Barber Shop...also a great option if you have a 2 yr old who can't do either the Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique or The Pirate's League)

(Miss A wasn't so sure she wanted to do BBB this year...so we started at Harmony Barber Shop but ended up doing the BBB at Downtown Disney...both were BIG hits)

TIPS AND EXTRAS YOU NEED TO KNOW:

*Don't forget about The Pirate's League...lots of princesses prefer to be a pirate and it's a great option if you can't afford the BBB or you have a boy who wants the whole experience

*Coach and crown packages will take about 30-45 minutes, castle packages are more like 60-75 minutes start to finish

*Disney asks that you arrive 15-30 minutes early for your appointment

*Be sure to bring your own brush or comb for the fairy godmothers to use-it's required although like everything at Disney, you can always buy a new one

*If your princess is going to have her nails done, be sure to arrive without any polish already on

*Hair must be free of gels, oils, hair spray and be clean

*Scalp must be free of issues like lice for at least 30 days

*Fairy Godmothers are not permitted to accept tips but if you have a particularly excellant experience, be sure to fill out a comment card located near the register

*There are almost always photopass photographers available at the BBB so if you don't want to do the optional photo package but have a photopass card and plan to buy the cd, be sure to have them capture a few shots for you

*Decide BEFORE you go what you plan to do about a costume. Many people opt to bring their own as it can be significantly cheaper (even if you buy one at a Disney Store in your home town compared to at the BBB) but if you don't have the room in your luggage or just don't care to bring one, either buy one there or be sure to prepare your princess because we've seen parents who didn't think their daughter would want a dress end up spending hundreds of dollars they didn't expect to spend because their little girl got caught up in the moment (and so did they).

Scandalous

2011-12-02T16:40:00.001-06:00

The last few days I've been feeling a little down when it comes to the whole body image thing. I've had two kids after all but really I've never had a great body image. Reason #86 why deployment sucks-Joshua's not home to tell me I'm pretty in person...online or over the phone just isn't the same. So I thought about changing my hair...my go-to response especially because I prefer myself blond and Joshua prefers me brunette (I don't get it). I'm constantly going back and forth. I'll probably be brunette by the end of the weekend but in the meantime, I decided I wanted a pretty picture of myself that wasn't the typical "mom" picture that I always have. So I got the camera out...it was fun (thank God for naptime). Not sure it will ever be my facebook profile pic because it's a little more scandalous than I had intended but Joshua likes it and it made me feel pretty so I'm good with it.

Discipline

2011-11-30T08:00:00.000-06:00

I'm a little lost when hear a friend say that they had a difficult time disciplining their child...not that they couldn't do it or didn't know what to do but that they didn't want to do it. Unfortunately (or thankfully-depending on how you look at it) for my children, we don't have that problem. It doesn't break our hearts to send our sweet angels to time out...throw out their toys...restrict them from TV or take away whatever thing they have most recently fallen in love with when they're being anything but sweet angels.

*Let me clarify...we do not discipline the 4 month old...I write "they" more out of habit because it's "they" now instead of just him and also because I fully expect the princess will get the same exact level of discipline that her big brother has come to know...though tactics may have to be adjusted based on personality*

It might sound odd given what you've read so far but I wouldn't necessarily call my husband and I strict. Pizza for breakfast from time to time-according to public schools it counts as healthy food now, the boy playing loudly while his sister sleeps-he's three and she has adapted well, not having a formal bedtime-they're stay-at-home kids who can (and hopefully will) sleep as late as they want...none of that will be the death of society. However, the rules we have are absolute. There is no breaking them. They all revolve around respect. Respect our family, Joshua and I's authority, others' belongings and bodies and we'll be great. Our children are being raised with the idea that there will not be a 3-2-1 count down. What we say to do is what we expect to happen. First time. Every time.

When that doesn't happen-when we don't have first time obedience, there's a consequence. It doesn't have to be big but it does have to happen every time. So far, it's been great. The older the boy gets, the less we've had to discipline him because he's learning that what we say, we mean. We're proving ourselves to him just as he's proving himself to us. There was a time when time out was a daily occurrence-sometimes multiple times a day, now it's closer to once or twice a week and we've had to adjust. We started with time out as a place to sit and get control of himself but the boy's a people watcher. He's content to sit for hours just watching the world go bye so we changed the time out location to "find a corner." It's the same concept of separate yourself from the situation, get control of yourself and miss a little bit of playtime. Of course, at home he knows what corners are readily available in each room but I have to admit it's kind of funny when we're at a friend's house or shopping and a time out is necessary. There's always a moment after I say "find a corner" where the boy is lost and has an "oh man, where do I go now" look.

Putting the sometimes humorous search for a corner aside, we like disciplining our children. We don't find anything about it to be heartbreaking. I wouldn't be heartbroken if my son learned any other new skill...when he started to crawl, we celebrated...when he walked, we celebrated more...when he spoke, we were ecstatic. Our joy at his learning didn't stop just because he fell or misspoke unless he was physically hurt from a fall but even then, it was a lesson. Besides, he's not physically harmed with discipline (spanking doesn't work for us-no judgement, just our choice) and in the end, being self-disciplined is just another skill that takes time to learn and we're happy to teach our children the lessons they need to grow.

Disney World's Pirate's League

2011-11-28T09:43:00.002-06:00

Disney World is full of tons of "extras" you can do on top of all the great rides, shows and of course the yummy food. Two of our favorites are The Pirate's League and The Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique. This week we're going to cover The Pirate's League...next week, we'll tackle every princess's dream, The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique.

THE PIRATE'S LEAGUE

WHERE: The Pirate's League is located inside the Magic Kingdom, nestled between the Pirate's of the Caribbean ride and the attraction's gift shop. When you enter the park go straight back toward the castle and take you're first left into Adventureland...it's on the left, just passed the Jungle Cruise attraction.

WHO: Kids (and adults) 3 yrs and up

WHAT YOU GET: A full pirate make-over complete with one of five face paint options, pirate bandanna, temporary tattoo (we found it lasted quiet a while compared to most temporary tattoos but is still easily removable with an alcohol swab) medallion, eye patch, sword and sheath. Kids also leave with a set of gnarly pirate teeth unless your little girl (or boy I suppose) chooses the Pirate Empress package which gives your little pirate princess make-up instead of the more masculine pirate face paint, a face jewel instead of a pretend scar, nail polish and instead of leaving with the gnarly pirate teeth, she will leave with lip gloss and nail polish.

WHAT HAPPENS: The pirates in your party will start out with a roll of the dice using a giant ship's wheel to determine their new pirate name. From there, they will go to the Muster Stations (aka make-over room) and wait for their new pirate name to be called (don't worry, if you're little pirate forgets his or her new name and doesn't respond to the first call, they will also call him or her by their land-loving name). This is when you can change your pirate into his or her pirate clothes if you didn't arrive with them already on. Pirate costumes are available for purchase when you select the facial package but you are free to bring them from home instead. The pirate trainers (aka make-over technicians) will speak only as a pirate and will transform you into the perfect pirate and then give you the Pirate Oath and watch as you pledge your allegiance to Capt Jack. From there you are given a sword and sheath and ushered into an ultra secret Booty Room...what happens in there is a mystery (for me in part because I had stepped outside to sit on a bench and nurse while Joshua went on with the boy)...but...it's rumored that it's a great room where pirates have their photo taken and are permitted to get some booty (the medallion). As your pirate leaves, they will receive a packet containing a very official looking document with their new pirate name and the Pirate's Oath.

HOW MUCH: The basic package...any of the five more traditional pirate facial effects (shown below) along with the sword, sheath, medallion, bandanna, eye patch and tattoo OR the pirate empress option starts at $30. Additional items like a second dagger, hook or the like can be added on. Costumes can also be added on and are around $65 (which is why we brought our own and I recommend it highly...I got a Children's Place pirate costume for our son which looks almost exactly like the pirate boy costume Disney sells at a local consignment sale for $10).

HOW TO BOOK: Call 407-WDW-CREW 180 days in advance and make a reservation. There are times of the year when you might be able to do a walk in appointment but it's rare. If you're already at Disney World and have decided it's something you MUST do but don't have a reservation, go straight to the Pirate's League check-in podium as soon as they open (9am) and IF they've had a cancellation for later in the day and IF they don't already have a wait list, you MIGHT be able to get in...but really just call and book it in advance. Pre-payment is not required but they will take a credit card to confirm your reservation and a $10 fee will be taken if you don't show up and don't cancel at least 24 hours in advance.

(hair was done the day before at the Bibbidy Bobbidy Boutique)

Thanksgiving...?

2011-11-24T09:56:00.001-06:00

I'm probably the only one not feeling the nostalgic holiday...we just got back from Florida, the weather has been so much warmer than usual and Joshua's not home. It just doesn't feel right. I made the mistake of telling my mother that I just wasn't feeling it this year and ended up having to convince her that I'm not depressed. For the record, I'm not depressed.

It just feels off. Don't get me wrong, I have more to be thankful for than any other year. Our baby girl is here (woohoo, not pregnant) and our boy is doing great even with the deployment.

In the end, what I'm thankful for most, is Joshua. Without him, I wouldn't have most of the greatest things in my life...our kids, our home, the ability to stay at home with our kids, many of our friends, almost everything that really matters. Holidays are not the same without him so I'm not feeling it. I'll still bake and have a big meal but I'm thankful that next year, we'll all be together again.

Waiting for my phone to ring...

2011-11-17T16:53:00.001-06:00

Days like today remind me how different my life is during deployment. When Joshua's home I see everything in a different light. If I miss a call from my husband it's no big deal...sometimes (shh, don't tell Joshua) if things are chaotic with the house, kids, dog, whatever, I might even hit the ignore button when he calls. It's not that I don't want to talk to him, I'm just "too busy." Now, if I miss a call, it ruins my day...or week.

When he's home and says he'll call but doesn't, I get annoyed and roll my eyes when he walks in the door. Now, if he says he'll call or text or email and doesn't, I worry. Hours that feels like days and days that feel like years of holding my phone and wishing it to ring. I'm terrified when someone knocks on my door. My stomach drops when I watch the news...somehow those stories come on at precisely the wrong moment. You know, the tear jerking human interest stories the local news stations love to show. It's worse when I know he's traveling or in the field.

I don't think I'm supposed to admit any of this. There's this image of military wives as stoic and strong (and many are both) and although I try hard to keep issues of the home, at home...meaning I try not to let the day to day junk here become an issue for Joshua over there...underneath it all, I'm pathetic. I'm one Hallmark commercial away from falling apart. So, for tonight, I'm going to avoid the news, avoid Hallmark commercials and do something...anything to stay busy...thankfully, I have two kids so that shouldn't be a problem.

Disney Dining Plan

2011-11-15T13:31:00.002-06:00

***If you're already familiar with the way the Disney Dining Plans work, scroll down to the bottom for tips on how to make the most of your dining plan credits and information on getting the dining plan as a FREE package inclusion***

2012 UPDATE:
A free refillable mug is now given to every guest (3 yrs and up) on any of the dining plans.
Quick service plans no longer offer 2 snack credits per person per day...instead it is now 1 snack credit per person per day which I have adjusted below...also adjusted is the nightly rate for both peak and off peak seasons for each dining plan.

When you start planning a Disney World vacation, especially your first, one of the biggest questions that you will need to answer is how and where you'll eat. IF you stay at a Disney-owned resort (not just at a resort/hotel which is on or near Disney property) AND you purchase a vacation package with a resort stay and park tickets, you'll also have the option to purchase a Disney Dining Plan. The dining plan (actually there's three different plans) is one of several benefits to being a Disney Resort guest but I'll cover the resorts and their benefits in another post.

As I mentioned, there are technically three different plans and it can be a bit confusing so I'm going to attempt to break it down as succinctly as possible. They are the QUICK SERVICE PLAN, the BASIC DINING PLAN, and the DELUXE DINING PLAN. I'll go into the differences and details of each plan and approximately how much they cost (Disney prices are always subject to change and usually if there's a change, it's upward) but first an overall explanation of dining at Disney World.

Disney World offers three different meal options (plus, all the snack opportunities...can't forget the Dole Whips and Mickey Ice Cream Bars).

The first type of meal is what's called a QUICK SERVICE MEAL. It's essentially a fast food style restaurant...sometimes with seating inside, sometimes outside...with much better quality food. Quick service (sometimes referred to as "counter service" because you order at a counter) restaurants don't require or accept reservations. Each of the four main theme parks, both water parks and Downtown Disney all have several Quick service restaurants.

The second type of meal is what's called a TABLE SERVICE MEAL. It's a sit down meal with servers like you'd have at home with any normal restaurant except with Disney World's table service meals sometimes have characters like Mickey and Minnie (Chef Mickey's, Donald's Safari Breakfast, Garden Grill to name a few) or the Princesses (such as Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Epcot's Norway) and RESERVATIONS ARE A MUST. I cannot emphasize this enough. Currently, Disney World will take reservations 180 days in advance for the general public and if you're a Disney Resort guests you can call 180 days before your check-in date to make reservations for your entire stay. You can now make a reservation either online at Disney Dining Reservations or by calling Disney World's direct line for dining at 407-WDW-DINE between 7am and 10pm EST. It cannot be overstated how important reservations are at some of Disney World's more popular table service restaurants. I've known people who have waited just a couple days to call and make their reservation but the restaurant they wanted on the day and time they wanted was already booked up so be sure to call as soon as you can.

The last type of meal is a variation of the table service meals called a SIGNATURE MEAL. A signature meal is an extra special meal...either a higher end restaurant (such as California Grill or dinner at Le Cellier) or has something extra about it like a special character experience (for example, a special photo package and dining inside Cinderella's Castle at Cinderella's Royal Table with several of the Princesses in the dining room going from table to table) or a dinner show (like our personal favorite the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue). Signature meals absolutely require advanced reservations and if you are not planning on using a dining plan to pay for your meal, expect to pre-pay with a credit or debit card when you book the reservation.

Ok...still with me?

Now that you understand how Disney World categorizes the various meals they offer...here's how the dining plans work...

Adults are considered anyone 10 yrs and up for dining purposes
Children are 3-9 yrs
Children under 3 may share off anyone else in the party's plate

All credits are per person and are based on the number of nights in your reservation NOT THE NUMBER OF DAYS

Credits can be used all at once or spread out and do not need to be used up on a daily/nightly basis

Credits are kept on your "Key to the World" card which is also your room key AND your park ticket

Tax is included but gratuity is not included (except for some specialty meals such as a dinner show like Hoop Dee Doo Musical Review). An 18% gratuity is automatically placed on any party of 6 or more at all table service restaurants

Everyone in a resort room must be on the same dining plan

The QUICK SERVICE PLAN:
(per person 3 yrs and up per night of stay)
2 Quick Service Meals (either a complete combo meal OR an entree, dessert and a non-alcoholic drink)
1 Snack credit (ice cream, chips, veggie dish, etc...generally anything under $4 is the rule)

Each person on the quick service dining plan will also receive a free refillable resort mug.

Current pricing for the quick service plan:
Adults (10yrs and up) $34.99/night of stay
Children (3-9yrs) $11.99/night of stay

The BASIC DINING PLAN:
(per person 3 yrs and up per night of stay)
1 Table Service Meal* (entree, dessert and a non-alcoholic drink...unless otherwise noted on the menu, appetizers are NOT included on the dining plan)
1 Quick Service Meal
1 Snack credit

*Guests with either the Basic Dining Plan or Deluxe Dining Plan (details below) can exchange 2 Table
Service Meal credits for 1 Signature Meal per person.

Current pricing for the basic dining plan:
Peak Season:
Adults (10yrs and up) $53.54/night of stay
Children (3-9yrs) $16.02/night of stay
Off-peak Season:
Adults (10yrs and up) $51.54/night of stay
Children (3-9yrs) $15.02/night of stay

The DELUXE DINING PLAN:
(per person 3yrs and up per night of stay)
3 Meals (EITHER quick service OR table service)
2 Snack Credits

Adults (10yrs and up) $85.52 off peak season or $89.52 peak season

Children (3-9) $23.79 off peak season or $25.79 peak season

Extras:
Pizza Delivery (not offered at all resorts):
2 Table service credits are required for each meal and includes the gratuity. Included is: 2 non-alcoholic drinks, a pizza and 2 desserts

Room service (not offered at all resorts):
2 Table service credits are required for each meal (just like a meal at a signature restaurant) and includes the gratuity. Each meal includes an entree, dessert and drink (children 3-9 also receive an appetizer)

Wine & Dine Plan (optional add-on that can be added to any package plan):
$39.99 per night per room and must be added for the entire length of stay
1 bottle of wine per room per night from a select wine list. Locations and wine lists are subject to change and wine is subject to availability.
2 wine credits may be exchanged for one bottle of wine with in-room dining or one bottle of wine at a signature restaurant.

********

If you are visiting Disney World during the Food and Wine Festival (generally the very end of Sept through the first week of Nov), having a dining plan is great. You can use snack credits at the various extra country pavilions-often for small meal samples normally higher than the typical $4 limit. (You cannot, however, use a snack credit for the wine samples).

Don't waste snack credits just to get water...all the snack vedors will give you a free cup of water and there are water fountains all over the parks (although many would say and I would agree that the tap water doesn't taste very good so consider bringing flavor packets).

Call to make dining reservations at the 180 day mark...it cannot be said too many times.

Be sure to keep your restaurant reservation confirmation numbers...either jot them down or just store them in your phone...it doesn't happen often, but sometimes Disney loses a reservation or gets the number of guests wrong.

Don't let food allergies keep you away from dining at Disney World. All of the table service restaurants will accommodate you and most of the quick service restaurants have large binders full of food allergy alternatives that they can offer.

Vegetarian and kosher meals are also not hard to find at most Disney World restaurants.

At the end of your vacation, if you still have snack credits available (as we always do), you can go to your resort's gift shop and exchange them for great little souvenirs for kids in your life...like a large (approx 5") lollipop or a box of Minnie's Cookies.

FREE DINING. It's what most people are interested in. Below you will read what USUALLY happens with the free dining offer. Disney World is constantly changing with constantly changing fees and offers so none of this can be guaranteed It's based on my own experience of visiting Disney World many times over the last several years and helping others do the same...

Disney has, for the last several years, offered one or more dining plans as a free package inclusion depending on which level of resort you book. The tricky thing is that Disney almost never advertises it so you have to keep an eye out on blogs like mine and other Disney planning sites and they generally announce the dining plan offer AFTER the 180 day window.

Usually, the free dining offer is valid for the very end of Aug through Oct...an historically low attendance time (also, our personal favorite because we like the weather). There have been years when it was extended (with some black out dates) much later. This year, for example, there's been some sort of free dining offered through March of 2012-again, with some obvious black out dates.

There's usually a window with which you must add the free dining offer to your plan and if you miss it, it's unlikely they'll be able to give you the package inclusion so here's what we've done...
We decide where we want to stay and make our resort reservation (without adding the dining plan). Then at the 180 day window, we book our dining reservations over the phone (because online requires pre-payment for some of the restaurants but if you call in, you can tell the cast member that you plan on adding the dining plan). Then the nail biter. We wait. We budget and plan as though we will have to pay for the dining plan because even paying for it saves you money and we find having the dining plan more convenient than charging it to our room, debit or credit card (although we have never had to pay for it because they have always come out with a free dining offer). As soon as we hear there's an offer out (usually Disney first announces a free dining offer for Disney Visa Card holders...and then a couple days later, opens it up to the US general public...internationals sometimes get their own dining plan offer separately). Also, keep in mind that there are only so many rooms per resort allocated for the free dining offer so you want to call and add it on as soon as possible. Especially in the Value Resorts because they are the ones which fill up the free dining rooms first.
For the last few years, the offer has been that if you stay at a Value Resort, you can receive the Quick Service Plan as a free package inclusion. If you stay at a Moderate or Deluxe Resort, you can receive the Basic Dining Plan as your free package inclusion. Of course, where ever you stay, you can upgrade from the free plan to any other Dining Plan and just pay the difference. We did that this year and it worked out great for us.

Whichever dining plan works for your family and whether or not you get it as a free package inclusion, you'll love all the great dining opportunities found all over Disney World. We've loved everything from having steak at Le Cellier to watching fireworks from California Grill to seeing our son dance with Mickey and the gang at Mickey's Backyard BBQ.

Disney World with Infants/Young Children

2011-11-14T10:22:00.002-06:00

I've decided to start writing a weekly Disney World post...mostly because I'm starting to get emails from people I've never met asking all sorts of great questions. I love helping people plan and get ready for their own Disney World vacations and what better way to make deployment go faster and Mondays a little more fun than a weekly Disney post. Mostly it's going to be tips and advice...the how-to's and must do's of our favorite vacation spot but I'm sure from time to time there will be just a fun did you know edition.

For my premier weekly Disney World post I thought it would be a good idea to cover the question which is asked most often by both friends and family..."Why and how do you go with such small children?"

The why is easy. We go because we want to. Joshua and I love Disney World. We love that it's such a unique vacation spot with thematic elements that envelope you and take you back to a more simple time. People are friendly. The customer service is extraordinary. The food and drinks are second to none.

Also, we bring our children because we want to. We enjoy their company and to be honest, as a military family, we're separated enough. Leaving them at home with Grandma (even if I wasn't nursing) just isn't an option for us every time. Waiting until they're older (something MANY people have suggested)...like old enough for our newborn daughter to "be able to enjoy it" also isn't an option for us because we never wanted to make our son who is three years older than his sister, miss out on something because his sister wasn't old enough-just didn't seem fair. Plus, until they're three, they're free so why not bring the little boogers along? And before it's said AGAIN, yes, we know they won't remember it. We don't care. We will remember it...we'll remember the boy's first haircut and when the girl was the smallest, cutest Tinker Bell at Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. They're our memories and we love them.

The boy's first trip was when he was 14 months old, our princess went at only 2 1/2 months (more due to the Army and Joshua's schedule than anything else) but both trips were great and I wouldn't have changed a thing.

The first thing you need to do when considering a trip to Disney World with an infant and/or small children is ask yourself what sort of temperament your child/ren have. Both of our kids sleep well and have had no problem sleeping in their strollers even with lots of activity going on. Part of that is, I'm sure, genetic and part is by design. We were never the type of parents to hush the dog or not do something because the baby was sleeping. Even if your kids aren't sleepers, don't count a Disney World trip out. You'll just have to expect and plan more breaks into the schedule. Staying at a resort on Disney property will really help because you can hop on a bus or drive your own vehicle back to the resort for a quick nap.

The next big thing you need to know is that Disney is designed to make your trip as easy as possible if you plan ahead. There are "Baby Care Centers" in all four parks that make a trip with little ones so much easier.

Each baby care center has the following...

*air conditioning/heat for a nice break from the weather

*a nursing room-a group room where ONLY nursing mothers are allowed (except in Animal Kingdom where the nursing rooms are private individual rooms-my favorite because I prefer to use a nursing cover even with just other nursing mothers)

*a tv room with Disney movies playing for toddlers who need a break or who are waiting with one parent while the other is taking care of baby

*ALMOST everything you could need for baby and toddlers...baby food, medicine, extra clothes, diapers, wipes (the only thing they didn't seem to have available was mylicon so be sure to bring some from home)...also, the prices are really reasonable-they could charge anything but it's fair and even comparable to what you might pay at Target or Walmart

*a changing room...basically just a room FULL of changing tables...they have paper disposable covers so if you forget your portable changing pad, don't worry, they got you covered

*a feeding room...basically just a room FULL of high chairs...they have microwaves and sinks so you can prepare the food or bottle and then clean up so you're not stuck having to carry dirty bottles and dishes around

All of the baby care centers are staffed by really kind, loving, grandmotherly types. The kind of ladies that just love to be around babies.

As great as the baby care centers are, there's only one in each park. They're clearly marked on all the maps and any of the park cast members can direct you to the fastest route. If you're on the opposite side of the park from the baby care center, don't worry, all the bathrooms have changing tables...most have diapers and wipes in a vending machine and you can always hop into a store if you need a break from the weather. Because we go in the fall and weather isn't too hot or too cold, I often found myself nursing (with my cover) on the nearest bench while my family did this ride or that. I never had a problem with people taking issue with me nursing but I do use a cover. However, I have friends who don't use covers and have never had an issue with nursing at Disney World.

The only real disappointment to the baby care centers is that because of their size, strollers are not allowed inside. As a result and because I'm a minimalist and didn't want to have to pull out the whole diaper bag from the stroller basket every time we changed a diaper, we became pros at keeping diapers, wipes, butt paste and my cover in a detachable fabric parent console which came with our stroller. My husband and son either stayed with the stroller/camera bag/extra clothes or Joshua grabbed everything and followed me inside to let the boy have some down time with a Disney movie.

Speaking of strollers...having the right stroller at Disney World can make or break your vacation when you have little ones. We always opt to bring our own stroller...when it was just the boy it was a 3-wheeled all terrain Jeep Jogger (which we loved and worked great)...now we have the Britax B-Ready which can be a single or double stroller. I cannot recommend this stroller highly enough. It was great this year at Disney and has been wonderful for me while Joshua is deployed. We used the infant car seat for the baby and the regular toddler seat for the boy. The best part was that often the boy was walking (he is 3 yrs old after all) and so we would put the infant seat on top and toddler seat below (we also used that configuration when he was in "time out") but when he was being good and just needed a break from walking or we needed to walk faster, he'd go on top and she'd go down below-switching the configuration always started some interesting conversations with the people around us.

Anyway, if you're worried about flying with your own stroller or just don't have one that you think would work well in the parks, you have two rental options.

The first: rent from Disney World either just for a day or at a discounted daily rate. Personally, I don't recommend the Disney strollers if you have very young children.

A-they're expensive $15 for a single $31 for a double for one day ($13 & $27/day respectively if you opt for a multi-day rate)

B-they're hard plastic...no padding whatsoever and a baby or small toddler just can't sit in them

C-you pick them up at guest services and so if you park hop to another park midway through the day, that park may or may not have any strollers still available (though it is one price per day and hops with you if you park hop)

D-you have to leave it at guest services so if you have a sleeping child at the end of the night, you get to carry said sleeping child from the park to either the bus line or to your own vehicle to go back to your resort rather than letting them sleep up until the last possible moment (a joy all parents know treasure)

The second rental option is the one I recommend: rent from a local company like Orlando Stroller Rentals where they offer high end single and double strollers delivered directly to your resort for a reasonable rate (you're still in a tourist hot spot so it's not exactly cheap). They have different packages up to 14 nights of stay and also rent out rain covers. At the end of your vacation, you just drop it off at the luggage room/baggage claim area of your hotel/resort.

There are some people who recommend just bringing an umbrella stroller because they're easier to fold down for the internal Disney bus system. I'm not one of them. At least not with very small children. I've seen too many parents hunched over with the front wheels of the umbrella stroller kicked up so the baby/toddler can lay back and sleep easier...meanwhile Mom and Dad are lugging the diaper bag because it doesn't fit under the stroller. It just doesn't look fun so for us, we've decided while the kids are still small, we'll either drive, rent a car while at Disney, or just plan on the extra hassle of folding down a big stroller to get onto the buses.

Another big thing you should know about Disney World with Infants/Young Toddlers is Disney's Rider Swap option...often just called the baby swap but it is applicable to any member of your party who either is unable or unwilling to go on an attraction.

Here's the big secret...having a baby doesn't slow you down...actually, if you're smart about it and use the Rider Swap, you can do MORE with a baby than without. Here's how it works...

(side note: fast passes are a great way to skip over the long stand by lines and unlike other theme parks, Disney doesn't charge for them. They are tickets which enable you to return at a specific time-a one hour window and go through a faster line rather than wait in the stand by line. You may only have one fast pass at a time per person so...if you have a fast pass for Splash Mountain which has a window of return from 10:10-11:10...you can't get another fast pass for it or any other ride until after 11:10. Although fast passes have a one hour window, they don't technically expire until the park closes at the end of the night. You get a fast pass by inserting your park entrance ticket into a fast pass booth, it will spit out your park entrance and your fast pass tickets. The fast pass booths are usually located just to the side of the attraction...not all attractions have a fast pass line but most of the popular ones do)

When you get to an attraction which doesn't allow infants or your toddler isn't tall enough or brave enough to ride, you go up to a cast member (usually at the fast pass line) and request a rider swap. The cast member will ask you who is staying with the baby/toddler and who is riding first...the parent/adult who is staying with the kid/dos will be given the rider swap and those who can and want to ride can get in the stand by or fast pass (if they have fast passes) line and enjoy the attraction. When the first rider/s get off, the adult or parent who stayed with the little one/s uses their rider swap ticket to go through the fast pass line. The rider swap is actually good for up to three people so if an older sibling or two rode with Dad and then wants to go again, he or she can ride with Mom using the one rider swap. But if it's just Mom, Dad and little one/s the trick is to split the fast passes. For example, in Magic Kingdom Splash Mountain and Big Thunder Railroad are right next to each other so what Joshua and I do is simple. He gets a fast pass for Splash Mountain and I get one for Big Thunder Railroad and then we eat, shop or do an attraction we can take the kids on like Haunted Mansion while we wait for the fast pass windows to open up. Then, we'll go to one...say, Splash Mtn and I'll get the Rider Swap from the cast member and wait with the kids while Joshua jumps into the fast pass line. He gets off and I go through the same fast pass line with the rider swap and then we do the same thing with Big Thunder. So we've both ridden both rides in the amount of time you would normally only be able to do one. Granted, you're not riding together but that's what happens when you want to ride roller coasters and you have small children...unless, of course, you bring a nanny (or Grandma).

The last tip I want to give you is to be aware of rides that offer a single rider line option. In Epcot, Test Track has a single rider line. In Hollywood Studios, Rock N Roller Coaster has a single rider line. In Animal Kingdom, Expedition Everest has a single rider line. Whether or not you have small children, the single rider line can cut your wait time from 75 minutes by stand by to nearly walk on but with small children, it's the only way to go. You're going to go on separately anyway so take advantage of it.

In the end, a trip to Disney World with small children and babies takes more planning and will require you to be more flexible but it can be a great trip. We've loved it.

I need rehab.

2011-11-11T14:55:00.001-06:00

My drug of choice is shopping...specifically bargain shopping...all the Black Friday and leading up to Black Friday insanity is overkill for me right now. It's not healthy how much joy I get by buying something for significantly less than it was originally marked. Like REALLY not healthy. I could literally spend hours searching the internet for deals...what am I saying, could? I HAVE spent hours looking up the best deal on this or that.

I heard it said once that a man would spend $2 on a $1 item if it meant he didn't have to shop around and a woman would spend $1 on a $2 item she didn't need just because it was on sale.

That is me. And my husband.

I have absolutely NO need for anything right now...sure, I'd like a new living room couch and a flat screen 60" Plasma 3D TV and a few new camera lenses and...and...and...that's the problem. The list of "ands" never ends...and it never will. Because there's always going to be a newest, latest this or that. It's one reason I've avoided the iphone like it was the black death (nothing against the phones themselves or any of my wonderful friends who have them) but it's one more step into a world I'm already far too tempted to join. Don't misunderstand, there's nothing wrong with stuff or bargain shopping but I've realized lately that the "stuff" and the "pursuit" of the stuff have taken much too important roles in my life. So, this is me putting myself in retail rehab. I'm sure I'll still buy Joshua and the kids' Christmas gifts on or around Black Friday but this year, I'm going to try and remember that it's not about the stuff...it's not about how much money I save or spend...it's about what we need. We need each other. We need Christ. That's it.

HH6 bag

2011-11-10T22:18:00.001-06:00

I've been distracting myself from deployment blues with lots of projects...here's the latest...

The front. (I took the name tape off for the pic and I'm not sure how clear it is but the rank is HH6)

I used some of one of my hubby's old uniforms...obviously the digicam ACUs and if you want to be technical, he's in multicams now but personally I think they're ugly...yes, they provide more camouflage and all that but they're brown and always look dirty so I didn't want a bag made out of that print.

The inside...I used a couple of the pockets from his cover too.

It was fun. I wish I could do a tutorial post but I really stink at that sort of thing (I could never show my work in 6th grade math either)-I usually just wing it on stuff like this. Anyway, I'll probably take a couple days off from craft type stuff but my next project is a dress for baby girl.

Life's a Beach

2011-10-29T22:35:00.002-05:00

I took the kids to the beach today to take some pics...mostly for Christmas...yeah, I know it's early but we won't be in Florida much longer and I had an idea for pics. I put the boy in a Santa outfit (minus the hat and shoes-it was the beach after all) and the girl had a cute red dress but the best part was that I put her in a Christmas present box surrounded by a bunch of other smaller boxes. It was windy and the boy was less than thrilled to be taking pics again so we don't have too many good ones to pick from but it was fun. After the attempt at Christmas pics we just had some fun...

Perspective

2011-10-28T12:08:00.001-05:00

Word of the day: Perspective.

To be honest, it's more like word of the month...if not word of the deployment. Perspective changes everything from how you judge a situation to how others judge you. Lately, that's become painfully more apparent. Someone I grew up loving and have recently reconnected with misjudged me and I misjudged her because we both thought we knew the other but we didn't-funny how that seems to happen in this era of social networking. We knew what others had said and what we remember from twenty years ago but we don't really know each other so we both put our own biases in the way of actually getting to know each other again. Thankfully, she came to me and we both realized our individual perspectives were skewed so now we're starting from scratch and getting to know each other all over again.

I'd love to say that this situation is a prime example of how I live my life but it's not. Often, I fall back to the easy route...the route where I choose to be judgmental and self-pitying (is that a word??? well, it is now). But, I'm really going to make an effort to change my perspective.

Take for example...since it's the biggest thing in my life right now...this deployment and all the ~~Murphy's Law inevitabilities~~ special circumstances that have come along with it...

*Halfway through a high risk pregnancy when Joshua (the hubby) left:

I could focus on the fact that I had as many as FOUR doctor appointments per week, all of which were at least 45 mins away

I could change my perspective and be thankful that I was still pregnant...that I didn't have another miscarriage.

*Delivered our daughter without my husband by my side:

I could fall apart every time I look at the hospital pics

I could be thankful that he was able to skype in with a mostly clear connection.

*Months and months...and more months without Joshua

I could pout...eat massive amounts of junk food...spend money inappropriately...or any other number of destructive things to take my mind off missing him

I could be thankful that we have an approximate come-home date....nothing specific so don't ask...but we know that there is a limit to how long he'll be gone-that hasn't always been the case for service members in wartime.

The biggest lesson on perspective (with regards to deployment especially) came, ironically, on Joshua's R&R at Disney World. Joshua was taking the kids (yes, both) to the bathroom while I sat and enjoyed more of the food and wine festival in Epcot. An older gentleman sat down next to me and we started talking...funny how that happens at Disney World but that's for another post. He was a retired Vietnam Vet Army Officer. He told me about when he came home from the war. His wife and their two children-a two year old daughter and 1 year old son he was meeting for the first time, met him at the airport. During the entire deployment, he was only able to call home twice. Both calls were short and full of static. And at the airport, his wife and kids walked beside him and watched as people spit on him and called him a murderer.

I hate this stupid deployment but it could be so much worse.

Happy Fall

2011-10-27T15:52:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, we carved a pumpkin for the princess and today my GG and I took the pumpkin and the two kids to the park for pics...

confession: it was 79 degrees out but it just felt wrong to have fall pics with the boy in shorts so I made him put on a sweater. Apparently, I've trained him well because he never complained and I think the pics turned out pretty well...

Lessons Learned

2011-10-24T20:40:00.001-05:00

Deployment teaches lessons.

Some lessons suck...like how to do anything mechanical-lesson learned: it's good to be married to a mechanically gifted man and without him, getting stuff fixed with two kids is a pain and it really cuts into the retail therapy budget.

Some lessons are gross...like when you have two sick kids and each is exploding in some form-lesson learned: it's good to have another person home to help with the cleaning...and by "help with the cleaning" I mean, of course, clean it all while I attempt not to vomit from the smell.

Some lessons are heart breaking...like realizing it's been months since this friend or that friend called, texted or emailed because somehow deployment changes friendships. People don't always know what to say or how to reach out. Double dates are out and a girl's-night-out sometimes take Herculean effort. In the end, their lives haven't been turned upside down so time just goes on and eventually the friendship turns into an awkward acquaintance.

But mostly, the lessons are life changing. I know, it sounds dramatic but it is. I've spent the last eight months...yeah, EIGHT months...learning things about myself and my marriage...some good, some not so good. I've been humbled and broken with my own weakness. I'm proud of my husband and our marriage. Strange as it may sound, we're as strong if not stronger as we've ever been. Don't get me wrong, we've had some disagreements...some might say epic fights but the distance has done two things. First, it limits communication which means the fights can last longer (like the entire month of May) but it also means that we're forced to take some time before reacting. And second...most importantly, it has been a daily reminder of how much I love him. I'm a fairly guarded person and the idea of sappy vulnerability scares the crap out of me but it turns out it doesn't scare me as much as the idea of living without him.

Military Families Win A Trip To Disney World

2011-10-20T15:31:00.002-05:00

Normally I don't just blog about various contests but this is a good one. Airtran and Walt Disney World Resort are thanking military families by hosting an essay/video contest to win a free 7 day 6 night trip to Walt Disney World.

Eligibility: Families of active and retired U.S. military personnel who are stationed anywhere in the world.

How to enter: Write an essay (no more than 300 words) or create a video (90 seconds) stating why you're proud to be a military family. Be serious, humorous or as creative as you like.

For more information and to enter your essay (or video) go to the official contest website.

Good luck!

3 months

2011-10-18T17:49:00.000-05:00

Our baby girl is 3 months old today...

Back from R&R...sort of.

2011-10-16T22:45:00.000-05:00

R & R has come and gone. Joshua has returned to his FOB and the kids and I are back at my aunt's house. We're not home yet and although I'm heart broken that we'll miss a good friend's wedding, getting back in time for it just wasn't possible. I feel like I need to get back up on my feet before we do this whole deployment at home alone with two kids thing again. In some ways it was harder to say goodbye to Joshua because I knew what was ahead but I also feel like it was easier because this time, I'm not pregnant (unless R&R left us with a special souvenir-please God, no special souvenirs).

So here's our vacation as condensed as possible...

Our first picture as a family of 4. Please excuse the quality. It was a phone pic the night we picked Joshua up from the airport. We all just piled in the bed and cuddled until the kids fell asleep.

The next day, we checked into our Disney resort. The All-Star Movies. We picked it because the boy is in love with all things Toy Story so we opted for the preferred rooms in the Toy Story building. To be honest, I wasn't expecting much because the All-Stars are the older value resorts and not to sound like a snob but we really think of the mansions at Port Orleans Riverside as our home away from home. But, much to my surprise, it was great. The boy loved it. We were super close to the main building. The pool was fun and the cast members (Disney's name for employees) were wonderful-especially Bob at the arcade. We loved Bob. I wish I had more pics of the resort but as always upon check-in,

I said "Babe, let's go take some pics of the kids at the resort"

Joshua, as always replied, "No, we'll do it later. I promise. You'll get pics of the resort this year"

And then, as always, it didn't happen.

So, moving on. Our first park visit was Seaworld. It was a first for all of us and thanks to their military discount, it was free. To be honest, I would have been disappointed if we had paid the $200something to get in because although we had a good time, we discovered it's not a very small child-friendly place. You are not permitted to bring strollers into any of the aquarium buildings. At. All. Fabulous. So, we won't be returning until the kids are out of strollers totally but then I'm sure we'll go back.

One of our favorite things was the Shamu show, One Ocean, but fair warning when Seaworld says it's a soak zone, it's a soak zone. The baby was not a fan of the soak zone. Ooops. Parenting fail.

I had the pleasure of feeding the dolphins. Joshua and boy both got to touch them earlier but stayed with the baby while I fed Flipper(s).

Seaworld has a few kiddie coaster type rides. This one was the boy's favorite. It's the kind that goes straight up and then just drops. Not. My. Idea. Of. Fun. But the boy loved it.

After we went to Seaworld but before we hit the main four Disney theme parks, we went to Disney's Typhoon Lagoon.

Me and the hubs at the water park. He's so cute.

Swimming with the sharks at Typhoon Lagoon.

Joshua and the kids at the Wave Pool. The girl was good with it...but the boy in his elder wisdom was a bit terrified. The wave that pool produces are pretty impressive. I was told the waves are 6 feet...since I'm 5'2" and a terrible swimmer, I didn't go out much past my hips and even then, I had to fight to stay on my feet with each wave.

Normally we laugh at people who leave water parks because it's raining but about an hour before the park closed, what can only be described as a monsoon hit. So this is us, running to the truck. Btw, we bought a Kodak water proof camera before the trip and it was great! We used it at Seaworld, Typhoon Lagoon, the resort pool and all the water rides at Disney. I highly recommend it. It takes great shots under water and even really great video with audio. For the price, you really can't beat it.

Our next big event was the Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. We went with a big group (my family) and all dressed as characters from Peter Pan.

From left to right...Tinker Bell (our baby girl), Capt Hook (Joshua), a pirate (me), Peter Pan (our son), Nana (my Aunt who is aka Nana), Wendy (my cousin's daughter), Smee (my grandmother GG), Tiger Lily (my cousin), the crocodile complete with a clock (my cousin's son), and an Indian (my cousin's husband).

I'm proud to say that I made both the Peter Pan and Capt Hook costumes (GG helped me with the Capt Hook but Pan was all me...it was also my first time with putting a zipper in).

Our favorite things of the night were the Halloween parade (which opened with the headless horseman above), the Villains Show (a musical show with almost all the Disney villains held on a stage in front of the castle) and HalloWishes (the special Halloween fireworks). It was great and we had a wonderful time but it's not something which I think we'll "have" to do every year.

We had the smallest, cutest Tinker Bell in all of Magic Kingdom. Everyone told us so.

HalloWishes

One of my favorite things about this trip (aside from the obvious-got to see the hubs and he got to meet our baby girl) was that my GG came this year. It was her first visit in over 20 yrs. My aunt and cousin were a bit cruel and convinced my 81 yr old GG who is not a fan of roller coasters to ride Expedition Everest without telling her anything about it. For those of you who don't know what Expedition Everest is...it's one of Disney's fastest roller coasters and without giving the best part away, it does something very few roller coasters in the world do.

GG and our baby girl.

Instead of an autograph book, this year, we brought a football and had all the characters sign it. The boy loved it and all the characters had a great time. Goofy even played catch with the boy for a few minutes.

We spent a day at Hollywood Studios and the boy (aka Buzz) and the girl (aka Jesse) got to meet the real Buzz and Woody.

We happened to be visiting Walt Disney World on the official 40th anniversary. Magic Kingdom was packed but it was fun to see all the die hard Disney fans.

WDW's 40th Anniversary.

My favorite boys

DINO-BOY

One of the things we were most looking forward to was the appointment we had booked for the boy at The Pirate's League (it's a pirate make-over where little boys and girls get to pick a new pirate name, get one of five different face paint options, take an official pirate oath, and get booty in the treasure room-a sword, sheath, medallion and sash)...but since the boy had never had his face painted before, we thought it would be a good idea to do a test run first at Animal Kingdom's Dino-land. It turned out we were right because the boy was extremely unsure of the whole face-painting thing. We found out AFTER he became Dino-boy that he thought it was permanent like a tattoo. Once he realized it was temporary, he did everything he could to keep his face paint on and it set us up perfectly for The Pirate's League where the boy picked the scariest face paint Disney offered...

Before.

We brought the costume from home but Disney sold basically the same thing for $65.

After.

This is Jeremiah Sharkstench.

Our last day at the parks was also OU/Texas. We had lunch at Le Cellier and then walked around World Showcase enjoying the Food and Wine Festival...something we did 3 other days too. We knew the score of the game without even looking at a phone because every time we passed a Texan, they bowed their head in shame.
BOOMER! SOONER!

It was a trip of a lifetime and I'm so glad we got to go (thank you Army for not screwing up the dates). It was horrible to leave Joshua at the airport but we're over halfway through this thing and now we can focus on the fact that the next time we see each other again, it will be because Joshua's home.

R&R

2011-09-18T23:12:00.000-05:00

Joshua's R&R is close. Like REALLY close. It's been the most surreal couple of weeks in Florida with family.

Sometimes I have to remind myself that it is a blessing to spend time with my grandmother, GG when I've spent a little too much time with her. So far, I'm a horrible wife (I didn't know my husband's jacket measurements by heart) and a terrible mother (A-I'm a bad influence-I crossed the street from the fabric store to the parking lot without staying totally within the crosswalk lines and B-she's convinced that I should be bottle feeding because "you can't tell how much the baby gets" by nursing which somehow equals I'm starving my daughter to death...my daughter who, btw, is 80th percentile in length and 78th percentile in weight).

The boy seems to be enjoying his time with the family, although tonight he told me he misses his bed. I miss my bed too. I also really miss not sharing a room with a 3 yr old boy but it's a small price to pay in the end to have a little extra support.

With R&R coming up, I've been overwhelmed with emotions. It's weird but then again, what of this deployment has been anything but overwhelming. I'm excited, obviously, but it's a different sort of excitement...it's a sick-to-my-stomach-wish-it-would-just-get-here excitement. I'm also a little afraid...I'm afraid the Army will screw up and the dates will get bumped...I'm afraid it will go too fast...I'm afraid my son won't be able to handle saying goodbye again...I'm afraid I'll fall apart when it's over...I'm afraid it won't be enough. I miss my husband more than I ever imagined possible.

You know how as a mom when your whole family gets sick...hubby, kids, somehow even the dog but you hold it together, you're strong until you get them to stop throwing up and back on their feet and only then do you fall apart and end up with the worst of it? That's how I feel now. I feel like I've struggled and faked the strong Army wife thing for so long and I've succeeded...our daughter was born safe and sound and our son is managing the deployment like a champ but I'm done. I haven't seen my husband, in person, in over six months. This tiny respite is beyond necessary. Joshua needs to meet our daughter, the boy needs to be thrown and wrestled and I need my husband to hold me...and now I'm crying...again. I'm so tired of being overly emotional.

Deployment sucks.

Britax B-Ready (Doubles mode) Review

2011-09-16T12:18:00.000-05:00

A lifetime...also known as six months of deployment and a baby ago, I posted a review on our new stroller, the Britax B-Ready as a single stroller. This review is over the same stroller in the doubles capacity.

First off, I have come to love this stroller more and more. As you may have read in the singles mode review, the convenience of being either a single or double stroller was the whole reason we bought it in the first place. It's perfect for a family in our situation...a 3 yr old boy, newborn girl and deployed Daddy. The ability to use it for my son with just the toddler seat, just my daughter with her infant carrier or both based on where we're at and what we're doing has been a life-saver.

(Sorry, I forgot to get a shot of just our son in the singles mode)

For the record, our 3 yr old really doesn't need a stroller but sometimes, especially with my husband 7,000 miles away, I like the idea of being able to strap him in. That's one of the things I like about the stroller in either single or doubles mode, our very determined son is not able to undo the straps. Also, if you're concerned about size, our son is 40" tall and very skinny. He fits length-wise with no problem...his feet do hang below where the foot rest is but the way the stroller is constructed, he's high enough that it's not an issue. Plus, another great feature on the toddler seat is that the foot rest comes up and he can just chill with a book or toy-which came in very handy when I was pregnant (I was high risk and had 3 Drs appointments weekly...he was contained but also had room to be entertained). He still has plenty of room above his head but I will say one downside is that if he wasn't a skinny little thing, I could see the straps getting too small very soon but the kid is three so I doubt we'll use it in doubles mode after our Disney World vacation and then my husband's deployment ends.

Before I go any further, I want to mention that a couple weeks after our daughter was born, my cousin came to visit with her then 4 month old son who also happened to have a Britax car seat. We went to dinner together with the babies and used the B-Ready to hold both. We faced the bottom baby backwards and the top baby out and then parked the stroller at the end of the table. My cousin and I sat across from each other and were at all times able to see both our babies all while taking up less room than two of the restaurant slings which hold car seats would have needed. Plus they were much safer in the stroller than those slings ever are...I've seen servers nearly knock them down more than once.

(I didn't get a shot at the restaurant with the two babies and since we only have one car seat, use your imagination to put the two images together and that's what we did at the restaurant)

A few things which I had mentioned in the singles mode review that I'd like to now re-address...

I was disappointed that the wheels weren't air-filled. Not-so-much now. I'm surprised honestly because I expected to grow to hate the stroller without the wonderful air-filled tires that I had come to love on our last couple jogger styled strollers. It really doesn't bother me at all because I don't jog and the stroller maneuvers so well...in fact, I think it handles better in the doubles mode even than the singles. Of course, between the two kids, their seats, the diaper bag and the stroller frame, it weighs close to 80 lbs so it's not for the faint of heart.

Speaking of the diaper bag...still loving that the basket has 3 zippers with which to have more access to everything underneath. I have a large-ish diaper bag that holds a surprising amount of stuff. It's approximately 16"x8"x10" and fits through either of the side pockets without a problem which is great in the doubles mode because the car seat blocks the normal access. Although, I will say I bought a couple large carabiners to clip things onto the stroller for our trip to Disney so we won't have to get in and out of the basket since we'll be living out of the stroller for two weeks but on an everyday normal use basis, it's easy as can be.

I thought the enclosed rain cover was great because it came free with the stroller and car seat and I still think that's great but unfortunately I've come to realize it only covers the top child either in the toddler seat or in the car seat so kid #2 is left out in the rain....I don't think it's going to be a problem for us because when we have both kids on the stroller our son is on top and our daughter is below in her car seat which has a fairly large canopy. Coupled with the fact that the toddler seat will provide some protection, I think we'll be ok but my husband made a good point that with the infant seat connected, our daughter is kind of low to the ground so if we end up running through the Magic Kingdom in the rain and hit a puddle, she could get wet. I will update after our vacation since that's the most likely time it will happen if it does.

I was also excited about the snack cups (sold separately) because I loved the idea of not having to take off a tray to get the boy in and out. Sadly, I came to find out the snack cups are tiny. They're super shallow and would never hold a sippy cup very long. Since I'm not a fan of running after the sippy cup escapee, I nixed the idea of the cups and did some research. I read that the UppaBaby Vista is made in the same factory the B-Ready is made and has a snack tray which fits both strollers. So, painfully (they're about $30-for a stinkin' tray) I ordered one and I'm happy to report it's true. It fits perfectly and I'm pretty excited about it because the tray is dishwasher safe...yeah, you read that correctly...dishwasher safe. That was a brilliant idea-whoever came up with it should get a raise. You can find the tray at Amazon although I recommend shopping around a bit, you might find it for a couple bucks less elsewhere.

I was going to do another Pros/Cons list as I did with the Singles Mode Review but I honestly can't come up with any real cons. It's a great doubles stroller and I highly recommend it!

Britax is having a sale this month, September, if you buy the B-Ready they will include either a car seat/base, a 2nd toddler seat, or a bassinet for free...for more information click HERE

Ten Years

2011-09-11T08:26:00.002-05:00

I woke up this morning (too early thanks to baby girl) and there were already half a dozen friends with facebook status updates remembering where and what they were doing ten years ago. For me, it was my freshman year of college. I was just getting to know my dorm mate and life already felt a little upside down. But this post isn't about me or what I was doing, it's about that day and all the days since.

So many have said that 9/11 was our generation's Pearl Harbor but I disagree. It could have been. Many would say it should have been. But it wasn't because we didn't respond the way our grandparents of the Greatest Generation responded. We haven't been forced to sacrifice and we have forgotten. It's been ten long years of war and though we remember what happened to us as individuals on one day, the battle that has waged on since does so silently. Outside of the 1% of the population directly affected and the minuscule amount of people who actually pay attention to politics, our country has moved on.

Earlier this year when I told our neighbor that Joshua was preparing to deploy, her response was "Really? I didn't think we were still sending people over there." She's not alone in her blissful ignorance. On one hand, I understand...it's easier to change the channel when the news turns to the war. War is frightening and unpleasant and our generation is one which, for the most part, runs screaming away from such things. We bury our heads in the sands of reality TV and our own social networking dramas. But the fact is we are still living with the remnants of that horrific day. We are still at war. There are still people who want America to fall and are prepared to give their own lives in that pursuit.

So, as we mark this historic anniversary, let us not just remember what we were doing ten years ago but more importantly remember those who gave their lives on that terrible day as the first casualties of this war and those who have continued to fight and die for our country every day since.

Florida

2011-09-05T11:57:00.000-05:00

Well. We're happily in Florida...sadly it's less sunny Florida and more tropical storm Florida but we expect clear skies again soon. The drive took a total of 18 hours...4 to get to Grandma's house-normally only takes 3 but we had a few stops in town before we could really hit the road. Once we had Grandma in tow, we drove overnight (so the kiddos would sleep more) 14 hours to Nana's house. I'm so proud of my kids! We only stopped 3 times for gas, diapers and nursing and neither of them had a meltdown the whole time.

After arriving at Nana's house, we did what we always do with Grandma (my mom), Nana (my aunt) and GG (my grandmother)...we went shopping. For hours. Surprisingly, both kids did ok-not as great as the drive out because they were fed up with their car seats but overall really good. We got back to Nana's house where we had left Bubba, our Rhodesian Ridgeback. Less than an hour after being back, Bubba fell in the pool and was struggling to get out. I ran barefoot outside hoping I wouldn't have to jump in and save him since I suck at swimming and he almost weighs as much as I do but thankfully my cousin Tommy was home and got to Bubba first. Bubba was clinging to the side of pool and Tommy just scooped down and yanked him out. Nana told us that dogs often drown in pools because they fall in and don't know how to get out but from the look of it Bubba understood the concept of get to the side which gives me some peace of mind but Bubba is worse at swimming than I am-which says a lot! He doesn't kick his back legs...he just sort of flails his front so his bottom half sinks and all that stays above is his little nose. It's pretty pathetic. So, yesterday we went shopping and I bought Bubba his very own lifevest. He loves it and although thankfully he hasn't fallen into the pool again, he's safe if he does.

Three

2011-08-30T21:45:00.000-05:00

I started babysitting when I was 12 yrs old. I began working with children professionally nearly 10 years ago...everything from newborns to teens, only children in the foster care system to triplets I nannied. I have ALWAYS hated when kids turned three. It is my absolute LEAST favorite age. I know I'm supposed to love my child at every age for different reasons...different developmental milestones and all that...and I do love my three year old son. Sometimes, I just want to love him from a distance...does anyone know if there are boarding schools for three year olds?

Anyway, the main reason I've always struggled with three is that at two, they're still obedient because you are (angel's voices sing "AWWW") MOM...and all the glory and fear that comes with it. At four, you can use logic most of the time to explain this is the boundary and this is why it's a boundary in our home or family. But at three you're stuck...they're no longer awe-inspired by your mom-ness but they don't care to be mature enough to listen to the logical reasons behind the various rules.

So, here we are at three. During deployment. All I really want to do sometimes is ship my son to his father but since that would be wrong...illegal...unloving...unethical...horrible...not to mention, pretty expensive since the boy is too big to fit into a flat rate box...and yes, I do love him, I won't ship him to a war-torn nation.

But seriously, I have a three year old son who is struggling with the fact that his Daddy is still far away and now his Mommy is no longer available 24/7. He loves his sister and (THANK GOD) has not yet started to view her as an enemy. He's confused. He's angry. He's sad. He's frustrated....but he's limited on how well he can express all those feelings because... he's three.

So I guess we just keep going. I keep trying to give words to his emotions, empathize with his pain but most importantly make clear and maintain the boundaries our family has always had...deployment or not...new baby or not. Eventually, I keep reminding myself, he'll be able to acknowledge his emotions and control them better because eventually he'll be four...then five...six...it goes too fast to really spend a year wishing it would go faster.

Time

2011-08-24T21:32:00.000-05:00

Time is going faster than I ever wanted with my children but not nearly fast enough with my husband. It's a bizarre paradox. I feel like every time I turn around my son is speaking longer sentences with more complex thoughts behind them and now with our baby girl time is a runaway train. She's still very much a newborn but she's begun to smile and hold her head up and I know she'll grow up way too fast.

My own life, my marriage seems to still be at a standstill. I don't know why I expected my life to be different (other than the obvious) after our daughter was born but I did. It hasn't, however and I'm starting to think this is just what deployment is...at least for me.

Today, my time was spent fight the Red Tape gods...they won the battle but I have confidence that I will eventually win the war. Long story short, I'm still trying to get baby girl into DEERS and thereby onto Tricare coverage. I technically have a couple more weeks to get it sorted but not really because we're leaving soon for our "extended holiday." I will blog more about that when I get the chance...I also plan on posting a review of the much beloved Britax B-ready in doubles mode soon as it has been used many times.

Meanwhile, I managed to get some new pics of the girl done today...hoping to get the boy in his element (dirt) sometime over the next few days. I always hated when people told me that I only took a ton of pictures of my son because he was the first born and once more came, I'd stop. Not. Going. To. Happen. But I will say it does take a bit of effort to not just photograph one child over and over to the neglect of the other.

Balance

2011-08-17T12:20:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow my daughter will be 1 month old. To say it's gone fast would be a massive understatement. I've been fairly successful at coming to a balance with the two kids...mostly because my son is so easy going and loves his sister to pieces. Unfortunately, the rest of my life isn't quite in balance yet.

Other than family and friends who came in from out of town (read: they got the priority) and a handful of local friends, I haven't seen anyone and few have seen the Princess. It's not that they don't want to visit and I don't want to get out, it's a lack of time. I've been swamped with Army stuff and getting ready for our grand exodus...we're going to the beach for a very long vacation (the one upside to this whole deployment situation).

In addition to our extended holiday, we're getting ready for the much anticipated upcoming R&R at Disney World, trying to get baby girl on DEERS, and getting Joshua signed up for his online classes. All while ignoring the news as much as possible because the last couple weeks have been hard for our state. I never thought I'd be the kind of Army wife who would have to avoid the news...I normally love the news and politics (yeah, I'm one of those but I try not to put those opinions up here very often) but I can't. I can't see the pictures...that's the worst part for me. When they show the families, especially the children, I fall apart. I can't do it.

So, instead I bury my head in the sand and focus on my kids, getting the next care packages together and what we'll wear to meet Mickey Mouse.

I'm done.

2011-08-02T11:27:00.000-05:00

It's been 5 months. I've learned more about myself, my husband, my children and my marriage than ever before this deployment and now I'm done.

I don't want to hear my son cry for his Daddy to come home. I don't want to be a single mom of a newborn who nurses every two hours 24 hours a day (yeah...went to the pediatrician yesterday and the Princess grew two and a half inches in two weeks...no wonder I'm feeling drained). I want my son to stop being spoiled by his Grandma and Nana...new gifts every week...sometimes every day and it's getting uncontrollable. He was misbehaving the other day pretty bad so I made him throw away one of his prized dinosaur toys...30 mins later he informed me that Grandma would buy him a new one.

I want my husband home. In a weird way, I keep expecting him to walk through the door just because I want him to. I'm not delusional, I know he won't be home for months...many, many months but I guess I'm just selfish. I've pretty much always managed to get what I really wanted until now. There's not enough work or manipulation or begging or praying or anything that will change the fact that he's still deployed and I'm still home with our kids.

On a happy/potentially dangerous-to-the-budget note, my Aunt (aka Nana), my cousin and her two kids will be in town for a long weekend and it's tax-free weekend for our state so let the shopping begin.

Belated update

2011-07-31T18:58:00.000-05:00

Ok...I'm a bad blogger. "Tomorrow" turned into 10 days later. Turns out there's a lot more to newborns that I somehow forgot but before I get to that, let me tell you about the delivery since I said I would a week and a half ago.

It was dramatic, to say the least. Joshua (the hubs) is at a new FOB...very new. So new in fact that there wasn't personal internet set up...still isn't but that's an annoying topic for another day. To be honest, he works with military computers and at the time, they barely had military internet. Two and a half hours before our princess made her debut, we found out that Joshua would be able to skype in and watch the delivery. It was the best of a bad situation and for just over two hours it worked great and labor continued well...aside from having to get stuck twice for the epidural-that sucked and I'm still having some back pain from it.

(for those of you who are opposed to epidurals in general, I totally understand and if it weren't for the fact that without it, I could've died because my heart isn't strong enough to handle the stress of labor, I might have wanted to go the o'natural route so let's keep the preaching about natural childbirth to a minimum)

Anyway, as I reached a 10 and started to push...we lost signal. Yup. So as my OB was telling me that the umbilical cord was going to be around my daughter's neck and I needed to focus and push, I was yelling at my mom to reconnect and press the "video" button. Nothing was working so as much as it frustrated my OB, I stopped pushing, turned and clicked the button myself. I couldn't focus on her without him. I pushed one more time and just as the video was coming back on, she came out.

I cut the cord and she got an 8/9 on the apgar scale. Once the stress of pushing was done and she was safe, the stress of it all overwhelmed me. I started crying hard...something I never do in front of anyone. My OB was concerned I was crying because I was in pain but after a moment to get control of myself, I was able to tell her it wasn't painful. Unfortunately, that wasn't the end of the drama. I had torn internally and my OB wasn't able to close it with stitches. Every time she tried, it tore more and I bled more so she left it to "ooze" and hopefully close itself. It did but it took a day and a half so they ended up keeping me an extra night. I opted not to get a blood transfusion because although I'm sure it would have been helpful at least in the shorterm but longterm there are much more serious problems it could bring and I had confidence that my body would heal itself with enough time.

Healing has come slowly...at least more slowly that with the boy. It feels like I'm just now starting to get my body back. Although, motrin is still a necessity. It's been nice to have my mom and friends around off and on. I've only had a few days alone with both kids and this week I'll have 3 more days alone and then I'm loading up the kids, the dog and half of our house to visit Grandma's because we'll have family in town that we haven't seen in months. It should be fun but it's also the "tax-free" weekend so shopping is most likely going to wear me out more than the kids which at this point says a lot.

The things I seem to be relearning about newborns or at least my newborn could fill volumes but in a nutshell...

*nursing is awesome for losing weight but not so pleasant on nipples
*losing 30 lbs in 11 days is rough (don't roll your eyes...it's exhausting)
*my daughter doesn't sleep or stay awake in a happy place unless she's held
*changing poopy diapers 10-12 times a day sucks
*nursing = purposely allowing pregnancy hormones to rage through your body
*having a 3 yr old who adores his newborn sister makes life much easier
*you do what you have to...ei pacifiers are not the enemy
*I have little to no patience for whiny parents who have their spouse in the same country

Well, the boy is waking up and the girl is hungry so although I'd love to wrap up this post in a nice, neat way, there's nothing about my life that's nice or neat right now.