Tropical Dreams, Mermaid Food, and Wishes on Wheels Oh My! 1st PTR

[Glittercat]

This was my 2nd Mother's Day since my mum passed, I handled it okay this time. Miss you and love you MoM.

Mother's Day with my husband Pete and our kiddos... We had a wonderful day that started with sushi at our favorite sushi restaurant down in Portland called Sinju. My right hand is still a lil' bit broken, so I had to learn to use chopsticks w/ my left hand, and that was entertaining! They had really decadent and fresh sashimi! We all tried octopus, we've had it breaded and fried, but never raw. It was not to my taste as I was tasted by an octopus when I was young, and still have great fear of them. lol. Celeste and Pete really liked it even though the texture was odd and they nommed it right up! Rascal and I did not enjoy it as chewiness and texture just didn't agree with us.

Confession: Went to Disney Store again, didn't buy anything, but looked at everything. Wore a Stitch tank top out for Mother's Day (changed into a dress for dinner) also wore a Disney Alice In Wonderland lock necklace with both outfits. lol.

After a day of just being out and about together we went for fondue at Urban Fondue, and service was super friendly, they brought me orange roses (my favorite color for roses!), several glasses of sparkling wine , and treated me like a Princess, it was crazy and such fun! The food was was exceptional, especially the brie and gorgonzola cheese fondue and the delectable caramel and cognac dessert fondue! I could have eaten it with a spoon- okay ummm maybe I did, *mumbles* but just a little. The restaurant was dark, cosy, and intimate so I didn't take pictures, but just had a truly blissful time hanging out with my husband and kids.

Rascal doing his Box Troll face *giggles* with Celeste looking perturbed.

I Love this fella!​

 

[pkondz]

This was my 2nd Mother's Day since my mum passed, I handled it okay this time. Miss you and love you MoM.

We had a wonderful day that started with sushi at our favorite sushi restaurant down in Portland called Sinju.

I've never heard anyone call Portland 'Sinju' before.
Curious.

It was not to my taste as I was tasted by an octopus when I was young,

And did he find you delicious? I would think mermaid would appeal to an octopus.
Oh, wait. It's the voice that they want, isn't it?
Dunno. You're the expert.

Rascal and I did not enjoy it as chewiness and texture just didn't agree with us.

I hear ya. I'm not a fan either.
I don't feel like chewing for an hour and a half every time I take a bite.

The food was was exceptional, especially the brie and gorgonzola cheese fondue and the delectable carmel and cognac dessert fondue!

Wow. That sounds.... heavenly.

I could have eaten it with a spoon- okay ummm maybe I did, *mumbles* but just a little.

Cute pic of the kids!

And a nice one of you guys too.
And you don't look psycho!

 

[KathyM2]

OMG all that sushi looks so good...and the FONDUE!! I checked out that restaurant hoping maybe they had other locations..but sigh...they do not...I LOVE Fondue. We have gone to the Melting Pot in FL a few times and I just love it. But that place you went to looks even better!! Looks like you had a pretty awesome Mothers' day!! There's no shame in looking at the Disney store anytime!! I have never done this before...but I think for our trip I'd like to have something Disney on every day lol...and especially for my DD!

 

[ursalita]

Sounds like you had a nice Mother's Day. So jealous of your sushi dinner, it looks delicious. We had Italian. It was good but I think I would have preferred that sushi you had. Great pics of you guys!

 

[tarak]

OHMYGOSH!!! Lefou's Brew is not to be missed - it's heaven in a cup!!!

It is really good. I was a bit wary of that foam on top, but it was quite tasty. We had friends at WDW the same time we were down. They have two boys who love the coasters, so Amara was very happy to have someone to ride with her (our middle daughter doesn't like any of them and our son is too young to without an adult). So while my friend Kim was riding herd on the coaster-junkie, I ran over to get her a LeFou's Brew and picked one up for me. Because it was a few minutes before closing, they gave me a box of sticky buns that were otherwise being tossed out. That was a nice bonus!

Sounds like wishes that came true! How fantastic that you did all of that!!! Did you and do sew a lot? Was that part of the job? How long did you work there? I'm hoping Tinkerbell still flies across the sky as I've never seen it except in video.

Love Splash Mountain! Okay I thought Pirates was cooler and more intricate in DL as well! It was absolutely the neatest them ride there, and it blew me away! Eager to see how the one at WDW compares now, as that was the first Pirates that I saw.

That sounds like a blast! Do you think you'll do a PTR for the trip? If so please let me know so I can follow along!


Thanks very much for that. Some days I handle it better than others. At the moment having a love hate relationship with my Wheels. Lol. Hands hurt too much to push them, but I hate to be pushed in my chair. Stubbornness is getting the best of me.
How is she doing? Does she have good care now? I'm so glad she has some answers finally! EDS is a weird beastie and affects each of us in vastly different ways- with a few commonalities of course.
Humor is a way of life and the more of it we have and share the better life becomes. Thank you very much for being here I really like reading your thoughts!

Mostly, I handed out costumes at the beginning of shift and took them in at the end. Not too exciting. Occasionally, we had to patch things during the day. I worked there in the summer during college. We were in a temporary building that was waaay over air conditioned, so I always wore a heavy sweater. Other CMs would come in sweating like beasts and couldn't believe I was cold.

I think getting a diagnosis was half the battle for my friend. At least putting a name to what was going on made her feel less like she was going crazy. She also has fibromyalgia and had more than one doctor tell her it was all in her head.

I'll probably do a TR for the other trip. Or maybe roll it into the other PTR. Hopefully things have calmed down a bit around here for a few months.

Oh, and your kids are just gorgeous!

 

[JoshAndEvsMom]

Joining in! Your energy is infectious! Plus you guys like Dr Who and the Seahawks. How could I NOT follow?!

Glad you had a nice mother's day! So sorry about your mom Holidays can be hard. Flowers & fondue can really do a soul some good! ...aaaaannd now you made me want fondue... lol!

 

[Tracy161]

Sounds like you had a wonderful Mother's Day - and beautiful pictures of you all!!! Happy belated Mother's Day!!!

 

[Glittercat]

Joining in! Your energy is infectious! Plus you guys like Dr Who and the Seahawks. How could I NOT follow?!

Glad you had a nice mother's day! So sorry about your mom Holidays can be hard. Flowers & fondue can really do a soul some good! ...aaaaannd now you made me want fondue... lol!

Thanks for that! The funny bit is I was about to start this with oh my gosh- then I checked your PTR and well, that is just how you started, so my bet is our energies are very similar! YOU'RE a SEAHAWKS FAN TOO?!!! YES! *high fives!* We 12's have to stick together!

 

[Glittercat]

Just a teeny tiny update:
My kids have never been into meeting characters- they enjoyed it when they did meet them, but really were not the sort to seek them out. Flash forward... I want to meet Princesses and Stitch. This has filled me with melancholy as I truly believed they would balk at character meets. So I very quietly asked my kids yesterday if they would consider one Princess lunch at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall and I promised Norwegian food which we have very little experience with. They both said yes. I blinked at them a few times, and asked if they were sure.
Half of the battle won, I tentatively brought it up to my husband last night when I was making minestrone. He said it's not really his thing, but this trip is for my birthday and he's glad to if it makes me happy. I squeaked out a thank you then promptly burst into tears! This is such a shock to me, and I feel so lucky! They said they were willing to do any character meets that I wanted to! I'm still kind of stunned, and even writing this down has made me teary again.
So for my 41st birthday apparently I can meet any characters I want to (and that are available of course). Is Stitch anywhere but 'Ohana breakfast?

When I can I'm making reservations for Akershus -and after looking at the pictures with me my Rascal just said that he's actually kind of excited about it and is adding characters to the wishlist!
In addition hoping to meet Gaston, Rapunzel, Ariel, Flynn Ryder, Tiana, Anna, Elsa, Baymax, and Hiro! Not sure if it will happen but oh it would be exciting if it did! I'm thinking of making a small 3"x5" or 4"x6" painting of each and asking them to sign their "portrait" then framing them hanging them over my art table. ​

 

[PamelaPaige726]

Hi Friend!!!
Getting started on your report! Lovely family you have there . Looking forward to sharing your journey!

I think I'm the most excited about meeting characters in my group too .

What a wonderful way to honor & remember your Mom! They are Always with us.

 

[KathyM2]

That's so awesome that your family is on board! They will end up loving the characters anyway!! And the that restaurant looks fantastic...it's yet another one that I wanted but couldn't get an ADR for!

 

[Glittercat]

I've never heard anyone call Portland 'Sinju' before.
Curious.

Hehe smart *** ummm all I can say is words and I often don't get along.

And did he find you delicious? I would think mermaid would appeal to an octopus.
Oh, wait. It's the voice that they want, isn't it?
Dunno. You're the expert.

Thankfully I only learned a year or so ago that was what she was doing! I was a really tiny kid, and the last in line for mandatory octopus petting at a marine science center in Newport on the Oregon Coast. I told them I don't think she wants anyone to touch her, as she had shrunk back against the bottom of the circular tank. They told me I had to or else we couldn't leave, so I climbed up on a step stool, reached my arm into the water to touch her, and she stretches one tentacle up and wrapped it right around my arm! I yelped and started crying as her tentacle was all the way over my shoulder, it took two grown men to disentangle her, and another to hold me down. There were bruises on my arm and shoulder. I still get the shivers when I think of it. The funny bit is I thought we were having something of a bonding moment, but then at Seattle Aquarium I was told that nope she was seeing if I would be good to eat it happens to a lot of divers as octopuses are curious beings and like to examine anything that comes close enough to grab... *cue nightmares forever* lol.

I hear ya. I'm not a fan either.
I don't feel like chewing for an hour and a half every time I take a bite.

Ditto! Also I got the shivers something fierce and according to my husband a panicked look in my eye trying to eat those suction cups. bleh.

Wow. That sounds.... heavenly.

It was decadent and perfect! I dream of eating it again.

Cute pic of the kids!

Thank you kindly!

And a nice one of you guys too.
And you don't look psycho!

Well let's be honest I don't loss AS psycho.

OMG all that sushi looks so good...and the FONDUE!! I checked out that restaurant hoping maybe they had other locations..but sigh...they do not...I LOVE Fondue.

I LOVE fondue too, it is one of the most fun foods to eat! I've found that my favorite dining experiences are all interactive lol. Melting Pot is yummy too they are a bit pricey here there just needs to be more fondue places!

Looks like you had a pretty awesome Mothers' day!!

I did Kathy! How was your Mother's Day?

There's no shame in looking at the Disney store anytime!!

such fun to browse there...and of course hunt for sales

I have never done this before...but I think for our trip I'd like to have something Disney on every day lol...and especially for my DD!

What Disney things do you hope to wear? Tee shirts? Disney bounding outfits? Jewelry? What does she like to wear as well?

Sounds like you had a nice Mother's Day. So jealous of your sushi dinner, it looks delicious.

It was a really mellow day and quite lovely! How was you Mother's Day lady?

We had Italian. It was good but I think I would have preferred that sushi you had.

Mmmm good Italian is a happy thing as well! What did you have? What are your favorite kinds of sushi? How about your favorite Italian? I adore food in case you haven't noticed.

Great pics of you guys!

Thank you kindly for that!

It is really good. I was a bit wary of that foam on top, but it was quite tasty.

It sounds quite interesting! We'll be sure and try it!

We had friends at WDW the same time we were down. They have two boys who love the coasters, so Amara was very happy to have someone to ride with her (our middle daughter doesn't like any of them and our son is too young to without an adult).

Such fun when everything gels like that!

I ran over to get her a LeFou's Brew and picked one up for me. Because it was a few minutes before closing, they gave me a box of sticky buns that were otherwise being tossed out. That was a nice bonus!

What a nice treat and bit Disney Magic!

Mostly, I handed out costumes at the beginning of shift and took them in at the end. Not too exciting. Occasionally, we had to patch things during the day. I worked there in the summer during college. We were in a temporary building that was waaay over air conditioned, so I always wore a heavy sweater. Other CMs would come in sweating like beasts and couldn't believe I was cold.

I believe it! Especially when sewing hands get so cold easily!

I think getting a diagnosis was half the battle for my friend. At least putting a name to what was going on made her feel less like she was going crazy. She also has fibromyalgia and had more than one doctor tell her it was all in her head.

Being a medical freak is a challenge, and when so many in the medical community don't have a clue you just start to feel crazy. Hopefully someday EDS and other rare diseases will be better understood, and I do see that beginning.

I'll probably do a TR for the other trip. Or maybe roll it into the other PTR. Hopefully things have calmed down a bit around here for a few months.

PTR PTR PTR! hehe then TR!!!

Oh, and your kids are just gorgeous!

Oh that is sweet of you! I'm rather fond of them!

Sounds like you had a wonderful Mother's Day - and beautiful pictures of you all!!! Happy belated Mother's Day!!!

Hi sweetie! Are you ready for your trip?! Thank you very much and yes it was a really nice Mother's Day! Sending happy packing up thoughts and a dancing banana to you!!!

 

[KathyM2]

Actually I'm pretty sure I hadn't heard of Disneybounding until this here PTR lol...but looks like fun!! I will probably do that once or twice with DD...and then if between now and then I find some good shirts when I'm out...I will try to have enough of a t-shirt collection for at least a few more days there lol...and then of course...there's the Halloween party so we have to have actual costumes for that...but I want them to be comfortable too...so that may be a challenge! But I love your Disneybounding ideas...and jewellery too is always fun...I do hope to get one of the Pandora charms...I was a fool and totally forgot to even look for them last time...but I'm pretty sure during march break the shops would have been insane anyway lol

 

[Glittercat]

Hi Friend!!!
Getting started on your report! Lovely family you have there . Looking forward to sharing your journey!

I think I'm the most excited about meeting characters in my group too .

What a wonderful way to honor & remember your Mom! They are Always with us.

Hello friend! So tickled to have you here! Thank you for the kind and warm thoughts, and yes indeed they are always with us! Not to be a pest or anything but you only have just over a year before your trip...

Isn't it time to begin a PTR?! *grin*

 

[Glittercat]

That's so awesome that your family is on board! They will end up loving the characters anyway!! And the that restaurant looks fantastic...it's yet another one that I wanted but couldn't get an ADR for!

Oh ratscatsandelephants!!! It bites that you were unable to get a reservation! All I can say is don't give up! From everything I've been reading there are still good possibilities especially if you go at odd hours! Early brunch/lunch, late lunch (3pm ish), or late dinner (after 8pm)! Did you check those times? The other tip I read was that it is often easier to get the reservation if there is another large event scheduled at the park then going during those times. I'm wishing you lots of luck!

 

[Glittercat]

Actually I'm pretty sure I hadn't heard of Disneybounding until this here PTR lol...but looks like fun!! I will probably do that once or twice with DD...and then if between now and then I find some good shirts when I'm out...I will try to have enough of a t-shirt collection for at least a few more days there lol...and then of course...there's the Halloween party so we have to have actual costumes for that...but I want them to be comfortable too...so that may be a challenge! But I love your Disneybounding ideas...and jewellery too is always fun...I do hope to get one of the Pandora charms...I was a fool and totally forgot to even look for them last time...but I'm pretty sure during march break the shops would have been insane anyway lol

What characters are you considering for Disneybounding?! Oh! There is a thread on the DIS for Disneybounding and it is full of ideas! Hot Topic has Disney merchandise and you can sort by character on the website! I just got the freaking cutest Tink tank top! Umm it is- one sec...

and they have all kinds of other adorable things! I'm looking for an Ariel as mermaid version, but just don't like the current ones, so will keep checking. I have to look up the Pandora things. If it is bracelet they are probably a no go for me, as I have to have the rubber or elastic kind, so I can make sure it does not get caught in my wheels! lol.

 

[wellesleyprincess]

Found your pre-trip from your sig when you posted on the vegan/vegetarian thread!

Loving it already!

 

[Glittercat]

Found your pre-trip from your sig when you posted on the vegan/vegetarian thread!

Loving it already!

Thank you bunches for that! I just found yours and followed along too! One thing...we're pescatarians but often eat veggie. Can't wait to read your PTR!

 

[Nermel9]

I'm in! Your trip already sounds wonderful, the Poly! So jealous! It's so beautiful there, I'm afraid if I stay there someday, I won't want to leave and go to the parks!

What great intros to you and your lovely family! Your daughter's hair is so beautiful! I have curly hair and I hate it because it's gross and frizzy so I'm always super jealous of people with nice curls!

Can't wait to read more!

 

[KathyM2]

I love that Tink tank lol!! so cute! I'm going to probably go through my clothes first and see if I have anything that works...and then until the trip gets closer I will keep an eye out for good stuff whenever I happen to be in stores.... I haven't really given up on some ADR's that I couldn't get yet - I actually signed up with DiningBuddy for one of them...for a BOG lunch...but it said it may take a while...so that's ok. I have also heard around here that often about a month out more ADR's become available so I'm crossing my fingers there. I'd really love to go to a pre-park opening breakfast too...but none of those were available. Anyway...I'm hoping, but if I don't get any more ADR's, I'm ok...we have one good character meal at Cape May, Raglan Road and Sci-Fi...so we'll be happy no matter what. Sorry about the Pandora...although...they do have some leather bracelets...would that work?