2012? No Problem...but when?

[NiniMorris]

Wow...an update that is trip-ish...


Just ordered a battery charger for my new Iphone. The only thing I dislike about my phone is the short battery life. If all I am doing is talking... the battery lasts all day. But if I am playing games or on the web, the battery is less than a half day. This battery will give me at least 2 charges for my phone per overnight charge... SO it should come in handy at the parks.


And.... since the last day of school is only 6 days away for public school...I needed to get busy with the summer portion of home school...DISNEY SCHOOL!

For the 4 weeks leading up to our Magic Kingdom trip we will be doing the Imagineers Guide to Magic Kingdom...doing two or three activities a week...then adding the other parks after we return.

So I ordered both from Amazon and they should be here next week!

Also, got our door decorations yesterday for the Disney portion of the trip. They are cute Mickey and Minnie heads with our names on them. Of course they are magnetic so we can stick them on the door...but I am always afraid that someone will 'borrow' them, so we will actually use tape and put them in the window. Now I need to find something birthday-ish to finish it off!


Nini

 

[babynala]

I can't believe how cold it has been. We finally saw 80 today. My kids started swim team in our neighborhood pool last week. Luckily they just put in a heater this year so the water is warmer than it usually is this time of year.

Love the idea of the window decorations. Your summer school sounds awesome. The perfect way to lead up to a Disney trip too.

How is your daughter and the baby?

 

[NiniMorris]

My son HAS to be the luckiest person in the world when it comes to getting PIN codes.

Last year he ended up with probably 5 or 6...with 3 of them for the dates we went. We actually piggie backed on his PIN...and then we had Free Dining offered to the General Public as well...

Well...he just called me... he got a PIN code for free dining for our dates! So, tomorrow I get to call Disney and have the code attached to our current reservation! I can now breathe easier....and I just saved almost $3000 for our trip!


Nini

 

[cogero]

that is fabulous news Nini.

 

[NiniMorris]

One and a half appliques to go and 6 out of 8 skirt panels are together. Once I finish these last two appliques, I can finish the skirt panels and attach the bodice (which is all together). Last step will be to do the double ruffle... I was hoping to get it finished before the weekend so I caould get it in themail...but we are celebrating Mother's Day this afternoon, so I won't be getting back to the studio until ....well, Monday if I am lucky.

I plan on enjoying our last day of good weather for a while....maybe it will be nice enough next Friday for the kids to celebrate the end of school in the pool! We'll see! (I really hate the cold front coming in...I know there will come a time in the not too distant future where I will be wishing for a cold front...but it is not today!)


We got the PIN applied to our reservations! While it was not the $3000 I was hoping for...(they only had garden view rooms available for the PIN) it did save us a little over $2500... I guess I had better get started on sewing for this trip...I have not sewn a single item for it! I see me being really, REALLY busy soon...


Nini

 

[cogero]

That is great about saving the money. I love saving money.

Can't wait to see the dress you are working on.

 

[NiniMorris]

Completely random...


My next door neighbors (the ones that have the goat and other farm animals...for those on FB) HAVE to be fans of Suite Life of Zack and Cody! Mr D was just watching it and I just made the connection...

Their oldest son's name is Zack (he is 17) the two in the middle are named Dylan and Cole (they are 7 and 8) and the new baby's name is Cody....

I guess they can't be all bad...



Nini

 

[DMGeurts]

Good morning Nini... I just wanted to stop by and wish you a Happy Mother's Day!

D~

 

[babynala]

Yeah for saving all that money on your trip. Your son is so lucky and I am glad you can use it to. Makes a Disney trip even betrer.

So funny about the Suite life family.

Hope you enjoyed yesterday's celebration and have a wonderful day today too.

 

[cogero]

Happy Mother's Day. Have a fabulous day.

 

[NiniMorris]

I hope everyone has had a fantastic Mother's Day!

I am really jealous of all those people who managed to get around to other people's trip reports to wish them Happy Mother's Day! I barely had time to do those things I HAD to do before church services this morning and \then I managed to forget a few items! LOL...


We started our Mother's Day celebration yesterday. Since I haven't talked to my son in ages, I wasn't sure what they had planned for today...he has been working out of town for the past several weeks, so the weekends are spent with his fiance ... And my son and his wife went to the races with her mother...I had the Grand Princess for the weekend...but we weren't sure what time they would be in...and with the new mommy having a visitors by invitation only...I didn't want to count on them too much..

So we went to Olive Garden yesterday for lunch. I am always calling it Garden Grill...and my kids love to tease me about it. I LOVE to eat there... then we went shopping at the mall (and since we were in Athens...there is only one mall...LOL!) and shopping at Target... then ended up at Sam's.

Although I had a list of things I was supposed to get this weekend, I did not get anything on my list.... but I did manage to find a cute outfit for Miss B for our Disney/Beach birthday trip next month. At Sam's no less! And she liked it! (ALL the stars were aligned for that fete!!) She will be 13 next month and I can usually guarantee that if I like it she hates it! She has her own style...always has...and prefers to dress VERY modestly...so shorts are out ... but we found some really cute capris in a cute robins egg blue that she fell in love with...yes, at SAM'S!!

Since I got to eat at Olive Garden (aka Garden Grill) for lunch we went to Sonic for dinner! It was the kids reward for being good!

Today, we went over to the new mommy's house for lunch. Daddy made grilled and baked chicken. (he is a FANTASTIC cook...and does 99% of the cooking in their house. ) All 5 of my kids were there...and it was a pretty nice time. It was the first time in a while we have had all the family together in one place...and felt really strange leaving so early...but new mommy was really tired and needed her rest.

It was really good to see mommy and baby doing so well. I can hardly wait for a few more weeks to go by so that Miss Amelia will not sleep so much and I can really start to spoil her! I am VERY happy to report that the doctor is very happy with her progress. She has lost down to a little over 6 lbs...over all almost a 2 pound loss...but the pediatrician is very happy with how she is progressing. It is amazing how much those 2 pounds cause her to look so much smaller. Her pediatrician is certain that if she had gone full term she would have ended up over the 10 pound mark. She is just starting to stay awake for short periods of time...usually about 10 or 15 minutes. As the length starts to progress it will mean more play time for Memaw!

For my presents...I got the Iphone a few weeks ago. So I knew I wouldn't get anything from hubby. My daughter in law took a picture of both the Grand Princess and Miss Amelia (don't have a nickname for her yet...) together, then the Princess picked out a shinny mirrored picture frame with a silver peacock on it. Adorable...it was the one and only time she would hold the baby...and she said it was only because she wanted to give the picture to me...I feel honored!

My daughter and son in law gave me a beautiful B&W family portrait as well as a cute picture of Miss Amelia...from their photo session with their friend. (It is nice to have a family friend who is a photographer by profession!) I was upset that the photo session the hospital did...well they decided not to get any of them...even after I offered to pay half of it... now that I have seen a couple of the new ones...I am happy with what they decided!

-----------

On the trip front... we have done the math...and even if I don't put any of MY money back for the trip...it is paid for! That is one of the best feelings in the world! I have been worried since there is a slight tax issue with my business, and I could not see how in the world I was going to be able to pay for the trip while I was closing my business... but now, at least the trip is saved, so I can now go on to deal with the tax issues without worrying about how it is going to effect the trip.

So in 5 weeks, I will be packing the car while Dad gets some sleep (yes, on Father's Day!) so we can hit the road at 3am in the morning for our trip to Disney! Our first day will be unpacking and pool enjoying! Then on Tuesday we will hit Magic Kingdom at rope drop (or as close to it as Mr D will allow) and enjoy all the rides Miss B likes. We have Tony's for dinner and the Dessert Wishes afterwards! We have never tried that...I am hoping it will be fun.....

Then on Wednesday, we will leave Disney and head to Daytona Beach for a few days beach vacation.

When we come home, Miss B will be an official teenager...13! Lord help me!



Nini

 

[NiniMorris]

I made my first neck cooler thingy... I can not believe how well it works! I was a little skeptical about only putting a quarter teaspoonful in each pocket...but it was the exact amount needed once it got wet!

I can't wait to make some for our trip.... easy and fast and works! what more can I want?

I will try to get back here after therapy to post the link for them....



Nini

 

[NiniMorris]

Here is the link to the super quick and easy neck cooler thingys!


http://www.instructables.com/id/Sew-Very-Useful-Neck-Cooler/



Nini

 

[DMGeurts]

Oooh - thanks for the link! I was considering bringing something like that along with us.

I am glad you had a good Mother's day.

And, so happy that your trip is still on.

D~

 

[babynala]

It seems you got to celebrate mother's day all weekend. It must have been so nice having all the kids and grandchildren together, I bet that will be harder and harder. So glad to hear Amelia is doing well in spite of the early arrival and weight loss.

Thanks for sharing the link about the neck coolers. I was debating about these for our Universal trip but I'm not sure I will get to it. I think that would make a good gift for my dad who likes to golf in the heat of the day (he doesn't like it when his feet get wet from the dew on the grass )

Hope you get everything with your business/taxes straightened out.

 

[NiniMorris]

It seems you got to celebrate mother's day all weekend. It must have been so nice having all the kids and grandchildren together, I bet that will be harder and harder. So glad to hear Amelia is doing well in spite of the early arrival and weight loss.

Thanks for sharing the link about the neck coolers. I was debating about these for our Universal trip but I'm not sure I will get to it. I think that would make a good gift for my dad who likes to golf in the heat of the day (he doesn't like it when his feet get wet from the dew on the grass )

Hope you get everything with your business/taxes straightened out.

Liz...

Can I say I am a bit jealous? I was not a fan of Harry Potter until Mr D chose one of those books for his read aloud...We only made it through about half the book together before he lost interest (probably seeing the movie didn't help any either!) But since then I have read them all and seen most of the movies.

I would love to go see The Harry Potter portion of Universal... not sure I would enjoy the remainder, but that part has been calling my name for the past year.

Unfortunately, my family feels like it would be 'cheating' on Disney to go to an 'inferior' park! LOL! So, if I ever get there it will have to be on a solo trip...(they even feel the same way about LegoLand...and Mr D is OBSESSED with Legos...and I have free tickets!)

Nini

 

[DMGeurts]

Liz...

Can I say I am a bit jealous? I was not a fan of Harry Potter until Mr D chose one of those books for his read aloud...We only made it through about half the book together before he lost interest (probably seeing the movie didn't help any either!) But since then I have read them all and seen most of the movies.

I would love to go see The Harry Potter portion of Universal... not sure I would enjoy the remainder, but that part has been calling my name for the past year.

Unfortunately, my family feels like it would be 'cheating' on Disney to go to an 'inferior' park! LOL! So, if I ever get there it will have to be on a solo trip...(they even feel the same way about LegoLand...and Mr D is OBSESSED with Legos...and I have free tickets!)

Nini

The HP portion has been calling my name, as well as the girls'... but my biggest issue is that I do not drive in strange places (one of the reasons I love Disney so much)... So, how in the world would we get there? Not sure I like the idea of a cab... I guess we could always do a Town Car? Kind of spendy though - and it isn't happening on this trip, or the next one...

D~

 

[NiniMorris]

Oooh - thanks for the link! I was considering bringing something like that along with us.

I am glad you had a good Mother's day.

And, so happy that your trip is still on.

D~

Evidently I am unable to grab more than one quote at a time this morning....sorry..


Anyway...I can not believe how easy those things are to make! It took me longer to choose a fabric than it did to sew them up. They are supposed to take 30 minutes to activate, but mine was ready for use after only 15 minutes... so from beginning to end was less than 30 minutes...I am guessing I could make all 5 of us one in less than an hour! (and that includes activating)

I would suggest if you are taking them to not activate them until you are there... they take up so much less room unactivated! Of course, the trip home they will be activated so I guess that really won't help much with the packing...since it is on the way home that I generally have problems with packing!

Take a zip loc type baggie to put them in on the way home though...they stay moist for EVER,,,ok not forever, but I have not re-wet mine and they are still plump and moist.

We have used the Frogg Togg Chilly Pads in the past...and while they work, they also make your whole shirt wet. They are designed for golfers...and evidently playing golf you do not care if your shirt is wet...but in the parks I don't always want my shirts wet...these only wet the neck area. It is easy to keep the moisture off your actual shirt...




....of course my husband said I should make some and sell them...they are selling for only $5.00 on Etsy... I doubt this wil be the thing that makes my business a 'success' LOL...I'll stick with something else to make my fortune! LOL!

Our neighborhood is having a large community wide garage sale this weekend... My husband said I should put the old sofa and end tables out (because around here, if there is no furniture for sale no one will even stop!) and then put a dress rack out with all my unsold dresses and shirts...while it is true I would get rid of them ...I would probably only make a dollar or two per item...He doesn't seem to understand that garage salers are out for bargains... not custom clothes! LOL




nini

 

[NiniMorris]

It is official...I am probably going to live...although I had some serious doubts for a while. hubby is making me go to the doctor tomorrow...I still am NOT running a fever, but my chest has started rattling when I sleep...according to the hubs anyway...

I know everyone is sick and tired of me complaining about the pool saga. (I know I am!) We actually had 2 days n a row of 80 degree weather this week...and the water warmed up to a chilly 70 ish. And of course the algae bloomed again. When it was cool the algae was fine and behaved itself and stayed away.

Yesterday I finally had a minute to even think about getting the pool clean enough to swim...after the first shock went in...and a good sweep, I turned the pump back on and went inside. Two hours later I went out to put a second shock in...and the pump had died. Deader than dead...no hope for resuscitation. It has a two year warranty...so I sen toff some info to the manufacturer hoping to get something positive from them...Of course it will be 2 or 3 business days before they contact me...and who knows how long before something is actually done.

As a back up plan I have picked out a new pump (ours is no longer manufactured...of course) that I will spend some of my Disney money on...but I really need to wait to see what the company is going to do... s the waiting game begins. At this rate we are looking at maybe June before we get in the pool...we are usually in it by Easter...I'm not loving this long cool and wet spring. Really hoping it goes back to normal next year!!!


But on the Disney Front...Four weeks from today (which is Father's Day!) We will be packing up the van and making last minute preparations for our trip! I can hardly wait! I seriously need a vacation!


Nini

 

[DMGeurts]

Suckiness about the pool... We went straight from WINTER to full blown SUMMER in 3 days... Not complaining, but it sounds like you are having as much fun with your pool as I am with the air conditioner in my car. Sigh.

Yay for packing up and heading out... Wish I could come with you...

D~