A story of renewed hope & the power of Dis

[Luvchefmic]

Thank you I am anxious for the interview Not in a nervous way I am so experienced and confident that nerves are not an issue Anxious as in happy excited to start something new ( and more money coming in surely will be a blessing)

Belle is doing fine today

I've done some research on this and spoke to vet She has had " episodes" now about once a year for the past few Its a wait and see game not going for expensive & extensive testing at this point and no need for meds Vet is on same page with me as far as over doing things and what is really necessary She's not a holistic vet but thinks like one KWIM ? in certain areas As time passes if situation changes of course we will rethink our strategies with this

We do vaccines but only what is absolutely necessary by law & by the environment/risk we live in so thinking along these lines we're backing off and dealing with things as they come

TR:

OK my photobucket files are a MESS and so is my mind I'll be posting pictures and while uploading them noticed our outfits were different so obviously these were taken on different days but who knows when

I will try my best to recap you might have seen some pictures before: I also realized we have pitiful small amount of pictures of us, either seperately or more importantly together I'm glad I'm doing this so I can change things when we have our Sept trip We had a great time in Nov but we need to memoralize things I think another part of the problem is we tried to jam in so many experiences in a short period of time and time was definitely an issue We stayed off site in a cute hotel in Kissimmee I found a great rate and it wasn't far from WDW The hard part was the hotel was let's say east of WDW and the house is west of WDW Having to run back and forth to take care of the dogs and Maxine and steal us time in between sometimes was a logistic nightmare We love them, they are our family, but there are only 24 hours in a day and only so many days Fred was home on down time In hindsight since we didn't stay on property life would have been easier if we made home our starting point and went back and forth to WDW from there Sept will be easier and much more fun since we are staying at CBR more about those plans later

So three lessons learned:
1- less pictures of things/scenery more pictures of us because we have so few chances to do things together

2- stay on top of reports as time fades the details of it all

3- Don't fall into the trap that so many tourists do trying to " do it all " it can't be done Make a plan and allow for things to change

 

[Luvchefmic]

I was not about to cook for Thanksgiviing was my way of thinking I wanted to just have the time to enjoy each other and go to WDW That's why I ended up booking the hotel Having talked about it since then we both agreed that a meal will be made at home for the leftovers, we really missed them and while we loved Thanksgiving dinner at WDW ( and would do it again ) this house will not be turkeyless again

Fred is very easy going about doing things on home time I have to give him that

He enjoys WDW and has a few favorite characters ( Donald and EEyore and Pluto ) but he would also be more than happy to stay home and watch a Law and Order marathon

I have the advantage since I am here that I can go to WDW whenever I feel like it The time period between Sept and Jan is my favorite time at WDW and I wanted to share some of that with him So much to do and see The parks when decorated are beautiful Our 27 th anniversary was Fri Nov 29 and neither one of us wanted to spend it at home in front of a TV so off we went with the plan...

We stayed at Destiny Palms



very nice I would recommend it and it was maybe 5 miles from WDW/AK side
breakfast was available and wasn't just fruit cereal etc there was french toast
waffles eggs all good


The bedroom was great the bed was so comfortable I could have stayed in that all day, in fact one night I had to go to work and I really didn't want to get up



The area is convenient to all major tourist attractions near alot of restaurants and stores so if we didn't have the running back and forth to our house it would be ok to stay there again Not fancy at all a parking lot view but it was clean efficient reasonable and the staff were WDW CM quality with their attitudes and helpfulness If someone had a car and didn't care about " the view" I would recommend this place without a doubt




Day One:


Mickeys Backyard BBQ was where we went for Thanksgiving and we will go there again I cannot talk up this experience enough The food was down home delicious and all you can eat !



I think it cost about $140 OOP for this, with the quality of the food and the time spent with characters it was worth every penny I think we had about 2 hours there maybe more..no one was rushed Not sure if its a 2 TS credit with DDP Which brings me to another thought DDP to me it is SO worth it We both love to eat not gonna lie here ( I mean a picture is worth a thousand words we could both stand to lose a few obviously neither of us could do an ad for Healthy Living magazine ..well maybe the before pictures )
and we LOVE character meals a real win win so that alone is worth a stay on property " staycation" I am crossing my fingers for DDP in Sept

 

[Luvchefmic]

During the meal there is entertainment and MANY character photo ops There is no photopass photographer inside during the meal but that makes sense The main entertainment is on a dance floor Think of a down home square dance atmosphere almost like in a barn That's the best way I can describe it for those who have never been You sit at long picnic tables/benches set up The characters are the entertainment with you participating on the dance floor There is also a country band and a cowboy that does trick rope The characters are very much spending time with people and that makes it very special as you see from the last picture here "Why sure just pull up a seat and join us ! "

Part of the stage:




Afterwards the characters file outside








The CMs clear everything out and set up for the next group of quests It is pretty seamless and that's when we got the surprise When you go outside the characters are waiting for you for photo ops I think there is a photopass photographer out there but I really don't remember The lines can get pretty long but they move fast We decided not to wait for all the characters Just pick some and then move on we had something else we wanted to do tonight We didn't wait on the line for Mickey and Minnie because they weren't dressed differently for this night To me it made NO sense years ago I had done the BBQ and Mickey and Minnie were dressed as a cowboy/cowgirl this time no so we skipped them as you can see it went from light to dark outside so like I said no one is rushing you out of here at all









Up Next.....where to after this ????

 

[PrincessInOz]

Looks like you had a great Thanksgiving. I remember you booking this and being super excited about it.

Wonder where you headed to after this?

 

[Luvchefmic]

Looks like you had a great Thanksgiving. I remember you booking this and being super excited about it.

Wonder where you headed to after this?

enjoy the popcorn have an update for Sept


Called the HR potential employer that I have an interview with tomorrow morning I can't wait to meet this person so very nice We discussed what hours and days availability they are looking for: either day shift ...I can live with this even though I am a night owl I can get up in the middle of the night and get ready to work OR swing shift

ah no, last time I attempted that I found myself asleep and waking up by hearing the sound when your car gets too far over the side of the road and your tires are running over that grid/safety strip whatever you call it ( I didn't tell him that of course ) I ended up turning the steering wheel over compensated and found myself facing the wrong direction of the road Thank God there was no one behind me I ended up in a 360 degree turn and hit the pillars holding up I-4 ( our major hwy here for those not familiar)

I wasn't hurt got out of the car and immediately dropped to my knees in gratitude You should see the front of the car...in fact when I can I will take a picture and post it

Lesson learned know your limitations

So now that you know the back story as to why I do NOT do the swing shift now it is time to plan This should be easy right ?






After taking into account the following facts to consider:

1- days/hours potential new employer will want, and
2- days/hours I have with present employer,
3- how early and how late I can adjust feeding time at our own Animal Kingdom
4- what dates Fred will be home & when he will leave,
5- when he needs to get his eyes checked & new glasses ordered
6-and when he needs to have his annual DOT physical scheduled for his job


I am very grateful that I will not have to plan FP+ in the mix I like the idea of FP+ in theory but for us ( and with so much else to consider ) its not even on my radar

ADRs however are and so after all that I hit the MDE website and as Mickey likes to say Ta Da ....It's DONE !!

 

[Luvchefmic]

So again not thinking about the " weight of it all " here is where we will be "putting on the feedbag" :

Thurs Sept 4th check in day at CBR Chef Mickey dinner
Fri Sept 5th Mama Melrose Restaurante Italiano dinner
Sat Sept 6th BIG 60 day Garden Grill Dinner
Sun Sept 7th BOG 2nd 60 BD celebration ( I deserve two bring on the grey stuff )
Mon Sept 8 th check out day leaving this day open as not sure yet if Fred hits the road today or tomorrow

Some people plan their park days and then their ADRs some people plan their outfits and then their accessories

I'm more a plan my accessories and then find an outfit that works so ADRs first everything else around that

Speaking of that if I am going to dress to impress tomorrow and help make all this happen I will say have a great day
and will talk to you all soon

Where the hell is that iron ?

 

[Deesknee]

GREAT UPDATE! I love the pic of you & Fred with Donald. You know Donald.... he's becoming one of my favorites.

Do people still iron clothes? Isn't that what permanent press is for. Okay, I still iron when I HAVE to.

Good luck on the interview.

I want to meet Fred. I think he needs to poke his head in this thread & say hello one of these days.

Okay, I have to get back to cleaning up wallpaper/floor mess.

 

[sewmess]

Quick swing through to say: Good Luck tomorrow and yeah! Belle's feeling better.

I'll catch up with the other stuff when I can. (but it was nice to see pictures of you and Fred.)

 

[nowellsl]

Best of luck tomorrow!!

Love the picture of you and Fred with Pluto!!

 

[franandaj]

Glad to hear that you are getting it all together!

That's a scary story about the car, and lucky that no one else was on I-4. I was picturing you on a two lane road back in the country not a 3-4 lane each direction major highway!

 

[RGirl]

Congrats on the BoG ADR! I hope you have a fabulous dinner together.

Awww - your poor beast. I’m glad Belle is feeling better.

Same thing for us on Thanksgiving! Not WDW, obviously, but the last couple of years we have gone out for Thanksgiving because my mom and I are sick of cooking that huge dinner, and there are only 4 of us. We love it, but I hate not having leftovers for the rest of the long weekend. So I cooked up a turkey breast and a few essential sides on Friday this year - worked out great!

Loved hearing about your experience at Mickey’s Backyard BBQ. The character interaction sounds amazing! I’ve always been tempted to book that…..

Yeah, um, avoid the swing shift!!!!

AWESOME ADRs!!! You are going to have a wonderful trip!

Oh, and good luck with the job interview!!!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Great ADRS.

Good luck for today.

 

[Luvchefmic]

First I did not fall off the planet Life has been a whirlwind since last we spoke
I had the interview, didn't get the job as a more experienced candidate was chosen That's okay, they have my resume, the door is open for future I did buy a new suit for that day and felt I had a good experience with the interview as I hadn't experienced one in about 4 years I will actively start applying again when I return from NY

On the present job situation Thank God I have been getting hours and that's why I haven't been around I managed to work 40 hrs over the course of last Fri through last Sun and will be doing the same thing this weekend


Fantasia our 14 1/2 year old was sick Tues night very scary and I truly thought this was it, I know she will not live forever, but thank God she has been very healthy and active throughout her life When a pup of ours is that elderly I lose all rational thinking and immediately jump to " this is it "

She had trouble walking and then had a bout of digestive problem ( not going to get too graphic here ) all in the course of about 20 minutes She downed a can of chicken soup went outside and within about an hour was acting like nothing ever happened Next day all back to normal eating playing like always I think she over did it eating grass the previous day

All work and no play is not happening here so Wed I was off and went to a baseball game More about that next time with pictures just gonna say our beloved NY Yankees wiped the floor up with the Atlanta Braves 7 to 0 ( apologies to any Braves fans...no not really....I was THRILLED ! )

OK have to get ready picked up a day shift Love to you all and will talk to you soon

 

[PrincessInOz]

Sorry you didn't get the job.

Glad Fantasia is fine.

 

[Luvchefmic]

Hello 2 leggeds this is Gilbert Pleased to meet you Since my pack leader is still very disorganized I am taking over for this morning




She has been a whirlwind of trying to clean catch up on laundry and get organized here on the Dis I understand the male ( who THINKS he is our pack leader ) will be coming back soon which is causing all this activity

I will say this, Ruthie did finally manage to find that wire to connect her camera to the computer and found out there is 431 pictures from Nov to this morning in there Personally I think one of the dachshunds PIA that they are hid it ( actually they're not both a PIA the female is kinda cute )

So just wanted to tell you what has been going on around here, I'll probably hit the eBay site soon as I love me some toys So two leggeds have a great day ...kisses to your 4 legged kids.....oh yeah before I go:

What I REALLY think of this Pluto character :

 

[spiritsim]

Hum could you be a little envious of all the attention your mama gives to Pluto ?maybe ?

Hi Ruthie just dropped by to catch up........

 

[franandaj]

Hey Ruthie!

(I made sure the phone didn't mess that one up.)

Yesterday I picked up a present for you at a yard sale. Nothing fancy, and it was only a quarter, but I think you'll like it. Can you PM me your address?

Glad to hear you're keeping busy with work and play.

 

[Luvchefmic]

How nice of you Alison Just sent you an email not a PM

 

[franandaj]

How nice of you Alison Just sent you an email not a PM

Even better!

 

[Pluto0809]

Ruthie! I totally missed your post on Friday, sorry.

Sorry you didn't get the job but I know there is something good out there that will be perfect for you.

I'm happy that you are getting lots of hours now. I hope that continues for you.

Gilbert! You are quite the comedian! I think you must be annoyed with the picture taking in that first photo because that's the same exact look my Alex give me when he is annoyed! Oh and that's not nice what you are doing to poor Pluto.