Did you put the Pull-Ups in the trunk? No!?! Did you?!? No!?! Eeek!

[lilpixiebabe101]

Wow...look at all the updates!

Did you and Amy actually all eat together that morning at CP?

I love the drink you found in France the day I went for one it was way too cold to enjoy one!

I love the pictures with Snow White and the chocolate mousee picture is priceless!

As Amy answered below, no we didn't get to eat together. We were on almost opposite sides of the restaurant. I kept bumping into her boys in the food lines though!

We were seated separately but had a good 15-20 minute visit waiting to be seated.

Ashley - your mom was so nice to take our pictures for us though!! I remember you saying she thought it was nuts! Which makes it that much more fun!

Thank you for the sweet words about my kiddos! They have their moments when they remember their manners!!

It was nice chat time. She just couldn't get over me wanting to meet random ladies and their family!

And you're very welcome. At least at that moment, they were behaving.... sounds like Alexa

I will have to call you butter....because you are on a roll!

Loved all the updates!

That was so sweet how excited your daughter was to see the castle for the first time!

Hopefully I will be butter again today. The mall is dead again sadly, so maybe I'll get more updates done. I can't start my PTR until I finish.

Wow that was a lot of updating...
I'm glad to see that Alexa settled in and enjoyed interacting with the characters. That's exciting that she was excited to see the castle.

Of yes. I planned the whole stinking trip around that moment! And it thankfully went off perfectly!

I can't believe I missed all these updates!!!

I think having Snow White be Alexa's first M&G was perfect! And seeing the castle with hardly anyone in the park... such an amazing thing that I am sure she was just in awe!!!

Very cool you got to meet up with Amy. We were not so lucky.

I am too. I was hoping we would catch some kind of live character that night. Alice, Bell, Jasmine, a princess. And I'm glad we did!

My family is planning our own family vacation in 2014. I'm telling you, I can't WAIT to see my son and two nieces when they first walk into the Magic Kingdom. My son and one niece will both be 2 and my other niece will be 6. None of them have been before (the babies are only 7 months old), but I've shown my now-4 year old niece videos on YouTube. (she's fascinated by Small World, figures. My sister has threatened to disown me if I get her on a Small World kick).

I suspect she will raise holy hell if we don't find a meet-n-greet with Tiana for her. That's her fave princess since we're in Louisiana and Tiana makes gumbo. My other niece? I suspect Mulan would be her fave princess (kick butt, take names) and my son? Jack Sparrow...no question.

With that trip and this one, it means I'll get to go to Disney TWICE in a 6 month time span! I haven't been since 2004, so twice in a calendar year is unheard of for me!

---Ashley M.

Hehe. I'll have to tell Russell that he went with an imposter last January..... and that apparently Garrett isn't a Disney baby....

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

Okay so real life update first.

Buddy wasn't able to start summer classes. We went up there like 2 times a week filling out different forms for them, bringing them random things they needed. Well comes time to finish out the financial aid process, and the counselor asks him if he plans to pay for summer classes out of pocket... He says wait... We've been filling out forms for weeks now for me to do financial aid this summer. Turns out the cutoff for Summer financial aid was May 4th. He's repeatedly told these people Summer Summer Summer. So now he's wasted all that gas because they are idiots. Soon he will make more treks to make sure the fall semester is all straightened out.

He has about 30 applications out at places. He interviews at my best friends work place. It would be a vet tech position. The one he has applied for that he wants the most is with LSU. Its only a minimum wage paying 40 hour a week custodian job, but they have amazing family benefits, and after being with them 6 months, there is the nice tuition exemption. (Well except for the 200-300 in fees per semester.) To me, that makes even the low wage worth it. So we shall see. He passed through the first cut, and it is under department review now.

I applied for two jobs this week. I work too many hours for not enough pay, and I want to be home more. So one of them I did not get. I'm a little aggravated about it, but I got the one I really want. Training will start June 26th. It will take some juggling to figure out where I'm going to cut hours at my current job first. We are all pretty "part time" I guess you could say. I work 4 days. a 11, 6, 6, and a 6. One coworker works a 6 and a 5. One is the boss and works as many hours as I do. And one works 4, 7, 6, and a 6. So no one works 40 hours. I think I will end up seeing if the other coworker (the non Ashley coworker) wants to take my Thursday 6. Or if the boss wants that one and the coworker can take his 4 hours thursday nights. Hmmm. (I know I know that was confusing. But it will make sense to Ashley!)

The job is with RetailData. The basic concept is. Winn-Dixie hires them to go into Albertson's and get all their prices, and Albertson's hires them to go into Winn-Dixies and get all their prices. All the time. Costco, Publix, Walgreens, CVS, etc all do this. We also do some "mystery shopping" but with a tape recorder. We go in with the stores circular to make sure they really have all the prices they are offering.

Alex moved to PreK-3. She was all excited. Loves her new teacher. They are doing swimming lessons twice a week which she loves!

July 1st the roommates will be moving out! Yes! Finally. We might have to find a interim person who just needs/wants a place to crash in between places for a month. Our new roommate who we both really like and don't for see a problem living with can't move in till August 1st. His lease goes up then on the place he is at currently. So Alexa and I will be moving July 1st. I couldn't be more excited! Well I could. I would be more excited if Buddy got one of these jobs before then!

And as to my mom. Those of you who followed along on the PTR as know some of the back story with my parents. They are officially divorced, and she has been happier in the last two months than I have seen her in a long time! One of her really good coworkers/friends is going through a separation at the moment, and they have been inseparable. She talked my mom into a pedicure the other day. That in itself is a miracle!

 

[annmarieda]

I really hope Buddy gets a job soon.

Very excited for you on the new job. Are the hours flexible? I know mine are and I am a vendor in stores... not quite what you will be doing... but merchandising... it is similar.

Very cool that your mom has someone to bond with!

 

[amandaw]

Best of luck to Buddy on the LSU job!

And congrats on your new job. Sounds interesting!

It sounds like a big congrats is all due to your mom!

 

[afwdwfan]

I'm sorry Buddy seems to be having some difficulties with school and finding a job. I really hope the LSU thing pans out. Even if the job doesn't pay extremely well, it will more than be worthwhile if it comes with education benefits.

 

[ashxf]

Hehe. I'll have to tell Russell that he went with an imposter last January..... and that apparently Garrett isn't a Disney baby....

(snicker:*snort*)



---Ashley

 

[ashxf]

me and my hubby (Russell) are pulling for Buddy to get the LSU job too. (Buddy's Russell's 4th cousin, Louisiana really is A Small World!) Like Ashley said, the pay sucks, and I know because I work there too at the library, but I'll be the first one to tell you the benefits just can't be beat, and the environment is awesome. It has to be the most low stress, welcoming job I've ever had, so much so that I'm willing to work 2 part time jobs to not have to leave my full time one here at LSU, although like Ashley, I work way too many hours for not enough pay and that needs to change soon. But the insurance and retirement are totally worth the lower pay. After everything settled, it only cost me $100 to have my son in the best hospital in town. I got 8 weeks of paid maternity leave, and there's no cap on how often I can take him to the pediatrician. And LSU takes care of their people too. There's stuff all through the year for employees, like free food, certain days off most other jobs don't give, longer time off at Christmas, to say nothing of all the university events for students that the workforce is allowed to jump in on.

Aside from some oddball policies the library has about NOT hiring from within the system for higher jobs, (like the 4 I've applied for) I'd have no problem staying here for the rest of my life.

I took advantage of the "free degree" thing too. I got my masters in library science by going part time for 3 years, and they let you take a certain number of classes during the work day with no difficulties.

We have a guy in janitorial right now who's in school for accounting. He's taking classes with one of our student workers.

Keeping fingers crossed for y'all! You guys deserve a break.

---Ashley

 

[OCDPrincesses]

Hey

 

[OCDPrincesses]

Bumping

 

[OCDPrincesses]

Bumping

 

[OCDPrincesses]

And 10. Now I'll get our PTR up when I get home from scanning