ABCs of a Nursing School Grad Trip + FL Keys Mini Report;D is for: Dang! Last Chapter of this TR...

[pkondz]

I knew you'd see it my way. LOL!

I am easily swayed.

You are welcome! We didn't go over to the "west side"; there was enough to entertain us in The Marketplace and Town Center.

I am woefully uneducated about the new DTD/Springs.
I know where the Harley store is and.... that's it.

NO, no! I may be a risk taker, but I am not stupid.

Okay. <phew!>

It was rather lovely. I need something like that in my yard.

I think you know we have a pool. A year or three ago, Ruby bought these floating orbs that had lights inside. I knew I couldn't say anything so I just shook my head and told her to go ahead and try them.
"But they'll look so nice at night!" She said. So she put them in the pool. Probably less than an hour later.... "Where are all my globes?" She asked. "In the skimmer, just like it's supposed to do."
But then again, I'm sure that if it was late at night, the skimmer would have a nice glow to mark its position. So there's that.

I'll bet that took... all day. I hate PBucket these days. A lot.

It took a bit of trial and error.
The fun part was loading the first 20 or so (at.... a.... very..... slow........ pace) and then they just.... disappeared.

Seriously? Yeah, every hour on the hour until like 10:00. I snagged me some pretty decent photos too!!

I never knew.

I could have spent hours in there looking at all the cool stuff! It was all eye candy to a super goober like me.

Want.

There was all kinds of eclectic stuff in there. Had I ever had the chance to go to the Adventurer's Club before Disney unforgivably did away with it, I imagine I'd have seen the same funky mix of stuff. But in perfect Disney style, it all comes together to tell a story that really works.

Yeah. The sad part is it was there when I was there.... but I didn't know about it then.

Probably really badly. I don't care. I had fun.

That's all that matters.

We don't take Thanksgiving lightly.

No kidding!!

Nope, we sure don't! I never know exactly how many we're going to end up with, this year I'm thinking between 13 and 18, but 4 of them are under 5. We'll be cooking 2 turkeys, a whole ham, 2 kinds of stuffing, sweet potatoes, squash, mp w/gravy, veggies....and desserts, lol.

O. M. G.

Luckily DH makes awesome pies so it's his job to make the pies, at last count it was going to be apple, cherry, 1 dairy free pumpkin, 2 pecan, he said he's making 10 pumpkin, but I think he'll probably only make 6 regular pumpkin and possible a cinnamon free pumpkin. DD is making cheesecake and I'm making apple crisp and a cake that has the frosting baked in it.

Where exactly do you live? And how close are you to Winnipeg? And it's Thursday, right?

 

[addictedtothemouse]

Where exactly do you live? And how close are you to Winnipeg? And it's Thursday, right?

Oklahoma, Map Quest shows it as a little over 19 hour drive almost straight south from Winnipeg. No not yet, so you have plenty of time to get here. Lol Pack up Ruby and the girls and come on down. There will be a huge age range 14 months to 85, so always somebody to talk to, or if you want quiet you can hide in the garage with my DH. My girls are always bringing one of their friends that have been "abandoned" when family goes out of town and they aren't able to go also, or as in the case of my oldest's best friend, she's family. My feeling is that nobody should be alone if they don't want to, especially on a holiday.

 

[Chrystmasangel]

So finally caught up. Since I have missed so much... I didn't want to quote stuff but I did want to mention a few things..
You and commando just seems like a funny combo. Really made me laugh! Thanks for that!
The dance party looked like so much fun!
Such amazing pictures you got from the DME bus!
Your window decorations looked good!
Coral Reef is such a pretty place. I think we sat at the exact same spot as you in Dec 2014. We were not impressed with the food though and probably won't be going back
I tried to warn you about not budgeting enough for your meals in your PTR....I tried!
Love the Henna work! I had it done when I went to the Grammy's 9 years ago. Just beautiful!

Did you get my PM for my mystery pic guesses?

Great review and insight of Coral reef. Reminds me of a restaurant at The Atlantis.

Me to, although I have to say the one at Atlantis is done a bit better in my opinion

Those of you who expressed your concerns with my infusion...Thank you so very much. I am actually STILL experiencing nausea every time I try to eat. I am still pretty tired and weak from it. Took my daughter and her friend to the Columbus zoo Wild Lights opening Friday night and for the first time ever, I had to rent an ECV cause I just didn't have any stamina to walk around.

Ask about Enbrel, Humira, or Xeljanz (pronounced Zel-janz).

I have these wrote down. If I recall, I think Humira was one of the other meds we were thinking about, but there was some reason it was eliminated. But will definitely double check it.

I'm not sure what insurance you have, and they may be pricey,

Right now I have really good insurance, but that is going to change December 15th as I am one of the 1000 people being laid off from Frontier.

but the first two are injections that you self administer and the third is a pill.They just released a once a day version.

I was just doing self administered injections of Methotrexate. I don't have any issues with giving them to myself.

 

[pkondz]

Oklahoma, Map Quest shows it as a little over 19 hour drive almost straight south from Winnipeg. No not yet, so you have plenty of time to get here. Lol Pack up Ruby and the girls and come on down. There will be a huge age range 14 months to 85, so always somebody to talk to, or if you want quiet you can hide in the garage with my DH. My girls are always bringing one of their friends that have been "abandoned" when family goes out of town and they aren't able to go also, or as in the case of my oldest's best friend, she's family. My feeling is that nobody should be alone if they don't want to, especially on a holiday.

You have no idea how tempting that is! Imagine! Me! Taking part in an American Thanksgiving! How cool would that be! But alas, it is not to be as I am working today and the next four days as well.

 

[MAGICFOR2]

You KNOW you'd be welcome! And I mean it! The final count is 18 and includes 2 Exchange Students- one from Indonesia that Mikki met from OSU, and one from Bulgaria- a blind student who lives with my SIL.

Just bought my 22 pound turkey, 15 lbs of potatoes, and 5 packages of fresh cranberries. 5 assorted pies are coming, and I'm guessing we end up with 10 bottles of wine. I MAY cook up a photo scavenger hunt too.

Is that after the 10 bottles of wine?

 

[Steppesister]

E is for Embrace Adventure​

Adventure is out there! to quote Carl Fredricksen. Life, and all the crazy array of experiences it offers, is there for the taking; it's up to us to milk it for all its worth. I don't know where I learned to love the next adventure, but I cannot remember a time in my life that I did not want to travel, see the world, seek out the extravagant, or believe that anything was impossible or out of reach. I won't lie, it does take work and sacrifice; not many adventures come to the door and set you on your way. You have to stand up, walk out the door and be ready to risk some things in trade for the amazing memories to be had. Perhaps that is why I like Animal Kingdom so much. It is the park that, rather than inviting one to make believe and dream, it beckons one to seek out Adventure and go. Will you join me in Disney's version of a catalyst meant to spur its visitors on to exploring our big, beautiful world?

I was ready for our day in the wild!



And the buses were too!



Even the birds invited us to "take wing" and delve into Adventure:


(Crappy photo, but one I hadn't shown you before. The only reason I like it is because it shows you just how many birds were released at Rope Drop; this was only a small fraction of them!)

There are a thousand places I would love to visit and enjoy, but sadly, Kathmandu, Nepal in general, is not one that is very high on my list. I can't really even put my finger on why. But I do love the careful attention to detail and the authenticity that the Imagineers built into Anandapur- the fictional name to the area of "Asia" at AK. The vast majority of the artifacts and displays were hand chosen and purchased from Nepal. The line queue is a veritable treasure trove for mountain climbers!

We didn't waste any time jogging (literally) the 4 and a 1/2 miles to EE when it was time. I should have trained MUCH better for Rope Drop (or at all). I may be old, but yeah, EAT THAT! We were on the first train of the day. See ya later, suckers! We rode 3 times in a row, twice stand by, then Single Rider. I only took a few photos before I put the camera away and just enjoyed the ride. Such a delightfully smooth track- LOVE IT!







On the 2nd time through the SB line, I stopped at snapped a couple photos. One had me cracking up for hours. I still look at it and wonder what the Imagineer's Team Meeting must have sounded like when they discussed this:



"I dunno, Joe. That's kinda weird putting poo in the queue."

"Nah, it'll be great! Imagine the conversation piece it'll be when the guests go to lunch at Yak and Yeti."

"Phil, no, that's just gross!".

"That's the point, Ed! The kids will love it! Can you imagine the conversations in the queue when moms and dads have to explain the word scat?"

And here's one that might have slipped through the Building Codes Department. Last time we did a remodel, we tried to get away with something pretty similar and didn't pass our inspection.





Just short of puking after the 3rd ride, I Grinched out on the kids and told them we "had other stuff to do and see".

Like take pictures (the kids were more than thrilled):






(Kinda likes the sunburst on this one; no, I didn't PS it in.)





(Yes, the sun coming through was intentional. )


We headed out of Anandapur and aimed for Harambe. Instead of tranquil and full of soft-spoken beauty, Africa is full of loud, happy noise. No less beautiful, but certainly awash with more activity. When I saw this, my face became one big, huge perma-grin. How can you NOT smile at this??





Time to just find a place and sit while, take it all in, enjoy the happy vibe. I knew JUST the place! Tam Tam was just finishing up, which made me sad, but not to worry, they have a show every hour most of the day. In fact, they told us as they were leaving that they'd be back in only half and hour, so I grabbed a shaded table at the Dawa with one of these in my hand:



In case you're keeping track, that was the:

Dawa Bloody Mary - Signature Bloody Mary: Snow Leopard Vodka, Loaded Bloody Mary Mix, Worcestershire Sauce, and Horseradish, garnished with Basil Leaf and a skewer of Truffle and Blue Cheese-stuffed Olive and Prosciutto $10.00

Letter 'D', ka-ching. It was absolutely delicious! Seriously, amazing morning cocktail to sit and enjoy the hub-bub in a very leisurely way. (Obviously, I'm going out of order, but in case you're curious, and can't wait until I get there, yes, I also enjoyed Drinks "B" and "C" the day before.)

The kids were antsy to take off for a short while and explore the immediate area shops, so I left them to their own devices. I told them to come back and join me when Tam Tam started, and while they browsed I did some people watching. Fascinating watching the mid-morning super meltdowns. WHOA! More than a few kids (and probably more importantly, the parents) just needed to go back to the resort and take a long nap. Take a swim, get a drink folks, chill out. Abiding by the agreement to meet back up, the kids mosied over and joined me. It was then that I learned exactly what their "devices" were. I let them go for 30 minutes. 30 MINUTES!!!! That's all it took for them to A) learn where fudge was sold, B) spend $15 on said fudge, and C) realize I'd put charging privileges on their bands. What the hail was I thinking?! Seriously, 4X4 pieces of fudge for EACH of them at 10:00 AM. $15?!?! Anara looked at my drink, and then looked back at me.....






I never said another word about the occasional purchases they made.

Soon enough, Tam Tam Congo came back out, and it was time to bust out our moves.Yes, I went forward to give my groove-thang a try. NO, I won't post the one picture Anara took of me up there. I looked like a total dweeb. Did I care? Nope. Had fun. And would dance again with Tam Tam in a heartbeat! But I will post the one of the kids:


(See those smiles? Yeah, I'd say the fun-o-meter was pretty much off the dial.)

We all really enjoyed their show, and pretty soon, our FiP time was up for our Safari. I'll save that for another chapter, but just so I do remember to post it, we did stay in the park and explore quite a bit. We walked about the small part of the ToL Trail that was open (most was closed as they build RoL), and we took a journey out to Rafiki's- another hidden gem at AK. But again, that's for another day. Instead, I'll just say, that after a few hours, it was time for this:



Drink Letter "E". This one is:

Eppa Red Superfruit Sangria - $8.50, also from the Dawa Bar. It was delightful. Very sweet and refreshing but with only about 1 tsp. of booze in it. I won't say I was disappointed, but it was pretty darn weak. NOT worth the money on this one. (The Bloody's definitely are and do pack a punch, but not this one.)

I'll leave you off with that. Truly it was a beautiful morning seeking out adventure and being encouraged to get out into the wide world of ours.

I hope each one of you has a truly wonderful holiday (for my American Readers) filled with family and friends and good food, and that you sincerely take time out to give thanks for the blessings you enjoy. I will not be on much over the long weekend to respond, but I do read comments from my phone throughout the day. I will have 23 for Thanksgiving dinner and I agreed to tutor a Nursing Student on Friday afternoon. I have no idea how long the out-of-town family will be staying with us. I do know that the 2 Malaysian Exchange Students Mikki invited will be spending the night with us. Busy, BUSY time! Please feel free to cozy on in here though and banter all you care to. I love the chatter and each of you!

 

[amazingact21]

Really enjoyed this last update. I couldn't agree with you more on Animal Kingdom. I love going to the Magic Kingdom and entering a "fantasy world" but nothing beats going into AK and realizing how many amazing things are right outside your front door.

Love your bracelet!

3 times on EE is very impressive first thing in the morning. I definitely think you earned that Bloody Mary afterwards. Even if it did cost you 15 dollars in fudge...

 

[KathyM2]

But hey, come on down!!!!! We'd love to toss another chair around the table! Dinner is at 4:00 on Thursday!

Man you have no idea how tempting that is...if only it didn't require a 5 hour plane ride at least lol. I'm sure it will be fantastic though!! Also though? It seems strange to have Thanksgiving big dinner on a Thursday...I know...normal for Americans lol. Our Thanksgiving is on a Monday, but most people actually do their big meal on the Sunday because everyone has to go back to reality on Tuesday....so. Weird. But I guess if you guys have your dinner on Thursday...everyone gets the day off and the next one too? So that's cool.

Eppa Red Superfruit Sangria

That looks delicious. Sorry it was a bit lacking in the booze. What can you do. Looked refreshing at least.

 

[kid-at-heart]

You KNOW you'd be welcome! And I mean it! The final count is 18 and includes 2 Exchange Students- one from Indonesia that Mikki met from OSU, and one from Bulgaria- a blind student who lives with my SIL.

Just bought my 22 pound turkey, 15 lbs of potatoes, and 5 packages of fresh cranberries. 5 assorted pies are coming, and I'm guessing we end up with 10 bottles of wine. I MAY cook up a photo scavenger hunt too.

Only ten bottles of wine? I take it eight of the attendees are minors?

I am envious. There only will be five of us this year. Mom, Rob, Sarah, Sarah's beau, and me. Rob has to drive to Detroit tonight to pick up kids from the Greyhound bus station. Not our first choice of a ride for her but her "planned" ride fell though yesterday morning so we were scrambling trying to figure out how to get them here from a little podunk school in the middle of nowhere (Wooster, OH) to our little podunk town in the middle of nowhere. The bus ride will be an adventure. I Facebook messaged Sarah the Simon and Garfunkel song "America" to listen to once they are on the bus.

 

[pkondz]

Adventure is out there! to quote Carl Fredricksen.

Would you believe I have yet to see this? Heck, my Mother has seen it... and she doesn't even like Disney! (Although she liked the movie.)
I keep waiting for it to come out on Netflix or DVD, but...

I don't know where I learned to love the next adventure, but I cannot remember a time in my life that I did not want to travel, see the world, seek out the extravagant, or believe that anything was impossible or out of reach.

And we know some of the places you've been and places you wish to go.... impressive.

I won't lie, it does take work and sacrifice; not many adventures come to the door and set you on your way.

They don't come to the door?
Crap. So you're saying that adventure I bought off of ebay is not coming via FedEx?


Poop.

Perhaps that is why I like Animal Kingdom so much. It is the park that, rather than inviting one to make believe and dream, it beckons one to seek out Adventure and go.

Agreed. And.... I have spent so little time there.

I need a loooong vacation at Disney.
If only they would consider free room and board.

Will you join me in Disney's version of a catalyst meant to spur its visitors on to exploring our big, beautiful world?

Try and keep me away!

Where did you get that? I like it! (Well, wouldn't look good on me, but it looks good on you!)

(Crappy photo, but one I hadn't shown you before. The only reason I like it is because it shows you just how many birds were released at Rope Drop; this was only a small fraction of them!)

Let the poop fall from the skies!!

There are a thousand places I would love to visit and enjoy, but sadly, Kathmandu, Nepal in general, is not one that is very high on my list.

Funny. I have zero interest in India, Africa, but... I would like to see Nepal (and Tibet... but that'd probably be even tougher.)

I may be old, but yeah, EAT THAT! We were on the first train of the day.

Good for you!

We rode 3 times in a row, twice stand by, then Single Rider. I only took a few photos before I put the camera away and just enjoyed the ride. Such a delightfully smooth track- LOVE IT!

One had me cracking up for hours. I still look at it and wonder what the Imagineer's Team Meeting must have sounded like when they discussed this:



"I dunno, Joe. That's kinda weird putting poo in the queue."

"Nah, it'll be great! Imagine the conversation piece it'll be when the guests go to lunch at Yak and Yeti."

"Phil, no, that's just gross!".

"That's the point, Ed! The kids will love it! Can you imagine the conversations in the queue when moms and dads have to explain the word scat?"

Yep. I can see that happening exactly that way.

"Now you kids leave momma and poppa alone. Scat!"
"Ewwww!"

Last time we did a remodel, we tried to get away with something pretty similar and didn't pass our inspection.

Really? Looks fine to me.

Like take pictures (the kids were more than thrilled):

I bet.

(Kinda likes the sunburst on this one; no, I didn't PS it in.)

I know. And... nice.

(Yes, the sun coming through was intentional. )

I know. Once is a fluke. Twice is planning.

How can you NOT smile at this??

Oh, easy. If you're a stick-in-the-mud.

Dawa Bloody Mary - Signature Bloody Mary: Snow Leopard Vodka, Loaded Bloody Mary Mix, Worcestershire Sauce, and Horseradish, garnished with Basil Leaf and a skewer of Truffle and Blue Cheese-stuffed Olive and Prosciutto $10.00

Mmmm.... but you can keep the olive.

The kids were antsy to take off for a short while and explore the immediate area shops, so I left them to their own devices.

Isn't that the best part of Disney with kids?
No worries about letting the rugrats roam free.

Fascinating watching the mid-morning super meltdowns.

I really wish I could talk with all those people before they go.
"Remember why you're there. For the kids, right? Things will not go as planned. They will get tired. They may be scared of rides, characters, experiences, whatever. Be prepared to back off on, well, everything. Do that and you will have a good time."

More than a few kids (and probably more importantly, the parents) just needed to go back to the resort and take a long nap.

Nap? But they just got up!

I let them go for 30 minutes. 30 MINUTES!!!! That's all it took for them to A) learn where fudge was sold, B) spend $15 on said fudge, and C) realize I'd put charging privileges on their bands. What the hail was I thinking?! Seriously, 4X4 pieces of fudge for EACH of them at 10:00 AM. $15?!?! Anara looked at my drink, and then looked back at me.....






I never said another word about the occasional purchases they made.

Oh, this is just perfect.

I looked like a total dweeb. Did I care? Nope. Had fun.

Good for you! Seriously!

(See those smiles? Yeah, I'd say the fun-o-meter was pretty much off the dial.)

We walked about the small part of the ToL Trail that was open (most was closed as they build RoL)

Only a DISer would read that and understand it.

I agreed to tutor a Nursing Student on Friday afternoon.

Oh, good. Because you have so much free time on your hands right now.
But I guess, it's the day after Thanksgiving and ... I suppose you actually will have some free time.

Nice of you to do this, BTW.

 

[Steppesister]

I'm woefully behind on The Mystery Letters for you to guess. But I've finally been making some good headway on photo editing beyond the Chapter I'm on. So, here are 2 for you to work on:

'C'



(Fairly easy if you've been here)

and 'D'



Go ahead and use the same PM thread you've been using for your other guesses.

Good luck!

 

[pkondz]

Wait... PM you? Or post?

 

[Steppesister]

Wait... PM you? Or post?

PM me, please.

 

[pkondz]

PM me, please.

done!

 

[Terra Nova guy]

I was ready for our day in the wild!

Nice bracelet and I especially like the "hidden Mickey" in the henna.

On the 2nd time through the SB line, I stopped at snapped a couple photos. One had me cracking up for hours. I still look at it and wonder what the Imagineer's Team Meeting must have sounded like when they discussed this:

I don't think I ever noticed this. I guess I've probably always done EE with FP. I've never rope dropped it. I'm a bit of a lightweight when it comes to drops on roller coasters, so it takes me a while to warm up to the idea.

I grabbed a shaded table at the Dawa with one of these in my hand:

Sadly, I have never had the pleasure of sitting in Dawa bar with a cocktail while people watching. It sounds wonderful though.

What the hail was I thinking?! Seriously, 4X4 pieces of fudge for EACH of them at 10:00 AM. $15?!?! Anara looked at my drink, and then looked back at me.....

Kid win. Awesome!

(Yes, the sun coming through was intentional. )

I like these sun pictures. I don't recall ever trying it. Something else to put on my list.

I will have 23 for Thanksgiving dinner and I agreed to tutor a Nursing Student on Friday afternoon. I have no idea how long the out-of-town family will be staying with us. I do know that the 2 Malaysian Exchange Students Mikki invited will be spending the night with us.

Have a wonderful holiday. Interesting you have Malaysian students coming. I was in Miri, Malaysia last week. I'm in oil & gas and have a job where I actually commute overseas a month at a time (it probably sounds crazy to anyone not in this industry, but it's fairly common). Make sure to say selamat datang (welcome) when they arrive and terima kasih (thank you) for coming.

 

[DonnaBeeGood]

.

 

[addictedtothemouse]

You have no idea how tempting that is! Imagine! Me! Taking part in an American Thanksgiving! How cool would that be! But alas, it is not to be as I am working today and the next four days as well.

Well, that sounds like some really poor planning on your part.

 

[pkondz]

Well, that sounds like some really poor planning on your part.

Must. Correct. This.

Maybe I can make that a contest prize!
Winner gets chocolate,
loser gets me for Thanksgiving!

 

[Steppesister]

I am woefully behind now on replies, not just from this update, but from before that as well. Work has been busy this week leading up to the holiday(s), and I have some other irons in the fire, so to speak. But, I'm really thinking Saturday, my company will be gone, and I can re-engage here and enjoy your company again.

Wishing each of you an amazing Holiday experience once again!

Steppe

 

[Steppesister]

OH!

And I forgot!!!!! I've missed DeVine WAY too many times, but not on THIS adventure!

Behold.... the outrageously beautiful, but elusive DeVine:






She's just too cool for school.