It was the best of times, it was the worst of times!

[DMGeurts]

First - so happy to hear your mom is home. How is she doing now? Hopefully she is less cranky, being in her own surroundings?

That is such a bummer that the both of you were so sick. No worries about all of us leaving... I am glad to hear that it gets better though.

Very happy to see Day 8 turning around for you! Looks like you were able to ride all of my favorites! Bummer that you had to throw the cupcake away - it was a beauty. But glad to hear that you were finally able to eat a little something.

Love that photo of Dan on the Star Wars Speeder! That's a great photo!

And I love your Pooh character drawings - as most people know, that is one of our DHS favorites!

Hahaha... Of course you are the one in the red shirt! LOL Silly... It's an adorable picture of you!

I hope you have a fantastic Easter! Much love to you and your family!

D~

 

[Chicago Mo]

HELLO!
Hope Easter went well? Glad your Mom is home. How is she doing now?!?

I LOVED your pictures! sounds like you guys had a WONDERFUL DISNEY DAY!!!

HS is my 2nd favorite park- close first to MK.. So much fun stuff there!

BOOOOOOOOO on having to throw away that delicious looking cupcake!!

Not Wreck-it-Ralph fans? Wasn't my favorite movie...


I just love your Tee shirts! Also that is a great picture of you.. Stop hiding behind snowman...

 

[disneychic2]

First - so happy to hear your mom is home. How is she doing now? Hopefully she is less cranky, being in her own surroundings?

Yes, she is more herself now. I'll give a full update below. Thanks for asking!

That is such a bummer that the both of you were so sick. No worries about all of us leaving... I am glad to hear that it gets better though.

Very happy to see Day 8 turning around for you! Looks like you were able to ride all of my favorites! Bummer that you had to throw the cupcake away - it was a beauty. But glad to hear that you were finally able to eat a little something.

Yes, day 8 was awesome! I hated throwing that cupcake away, but that just indicates how "off" my stomach was. It didn't really appeal to me. And I'm a sweets person!! Biiiiiig time!!!!!

Love that photo of Dan on the Star Wars Speeder! That's a great photo!

I have a picture of him on that thing from almost every trip we've been there. In September there was a Photopass photographer there and he gave Dan a light saber to hold. Pretty cool!

And I love your Pooh character drawings - as most people know, that is one of our DHS favorites!

I sure do. Seeing your drawings from your last trip was what made me want to do it! We did both really enjoy it, and plan to do it again for sure.

Hahaha... Of course you are the one in the red shirt! LOL Silly... It's an adorable picture of you!

HaHa, yes, and Mo nailed me on "hiding behind" the snowman. I totally was!

I hope you have a fantastic Easter! Much love to you and your family!

D~

Thanks, D~ I hope yours with your Dad was great and so glad your Saturday celebration went well.

HELLO!
Hope Easter went well? Glad your Mom is home. How is she doing now?!?

Easter was great! How did the munchkins enjoy their goodies? I'll update about Mom below. Thanks so much for asking!

I LOVED your pictures! sounds like you guys had a WONDERFUL DISNEY DAY!!!

HS is my 2nd favorite park- close first to MK.. So much fun stuff there!

Yes, day 8 was more like what we are used to. We were so happy to both be feeling good and able to enjoy our day! There really is so much to do at HS. I just love it!

BOOOOOOOOO on having to throw away that delicious looking cupcake!!

Not Wreck-it-Ralph fans? Wasn't my favorite movie...

Yep, can you believe it? When I turn down sweets, something is definitely not right!

Yeah, not so much on the movie. Some of them just hit me that way. There weren't a lot of kids in line for them either, so we must not be the only ones.

I just love your Tee shirts! Also that is a great picture of you.. Stop hiding behind snowman...

Hahaha!! You caught me! That's sort of my default when I'm going to have a picture taken. Get in the back, behind someone or something. I have never really liked having my picture taken. Even when I was a little girl and when I was a skinny, decent-looking younger self. I don't really know why.

Thanks for the t-shirt love. I made those for our September trip and we wore them again for February. It's nice to get a lot of milage on them since they do take a bit of work to get them just right.

Thanks for stopping by.

****************************************************************

I hope everyone had an awesome Easter with lots of family and/or friends around! I didn't get any sleep Saturday night. So, I went to bed at 8AM and got up at 11:30!! I told Dan to get me up for church, but he said I was sleeping so soundly, he didn't want to disturb me.

I had ordered a meal at Bob Evans to be picked up at 12:30. I've never done this before, I usually cook, but Mom said she didn't feel like leaving home, so this seemed like a good solution. It was. We enjoyed lunch with them and visited for a couple of hours.

As far as how she is doing, she is wobbly when she walks and of course out of breath whenever she does anything. To top it off, Dad has neuropathy in his legs and can't be on his feet very long. Mom wants to look into assisted living, but Dad won't hear of it. He thinks it's a place to go to die. We've tried for a couple of years to get him to look at it differently, but he is a very stubborn, opinionated person who is never wrong. I hope it doesn't take an accident or something horrible to change his mind. I've offered to come over every day to clean and cook for them, but they won't hear of that. It is so difficult to deal with aging parents who are not in the best of health!

After Mom and Dad's, we went to Dan's Mom. Now, she is 91 and hosted dinner for 13 people. She cooked a lot of the meal, but everyone brought something too. She is so healthy and self sufficient, it's a joy to be around her! We had a very nice visit with Dan's sister and all of her family. She has 3 grown daughters, one of whom is married with 2 kids. Dan's brother and his wife came after we ate to visit as well. It was a full house, but a good time. And the weather was beautiful!!

I think I may be going to Colorado in a couple of weeks to visit with Emily, Charlotte and Caroline. Josh won't be home from Kuait for another 6 weeks, so I thought I'd go and break up Emily's loneliness. I'll be there for Charlotte's "graduation" from pre-school, which I think is a bit ridiculous, but wouldn't miss it for the world. I'll keep you posted as the plans solidify.

Also, on the Disney front,
Dan and I will plan our trip with Miles as though we're going, and hopefully by next April he will be over his fear of flying. If not, we'll probably change our dates to sometime in September and just go ourselves. I do hope he wants to go, though, so that's what we're planning.

Okay, hope everyone has a fantastic day, whatever is on your agenda. Blessings and prayers to all who need them. I just feel so very blessed in my life and am so grateful to God! I have the best life I know and the best DIS friends ever!!!

 

[Chicago Mo]

That's fantastic news.. everyone seems very happy! I hope you can persuade your parents into the assisted living program. some of the places are really nice.

YAY another fun trip in the works!!!

 

[lovedonaldduck]

Glad you had a good Easter!

It doesn't sound like an option - but maybe your dad would consider checking out some assisted living facilities? Some are like your dad thinks, just a place to go and wait to die; but some of them are really great and help get the residents active and engaged. It's just like finding the right house in neighborhood - there's something for everyone but what is a good fit for you might not work for someone else. Just a thought, although from what you wrote it sounds like he has his mind mad up.

Your kids certainly spread out all over the place, didn't they? Colorado, Virginia, and Florida (right?). I think a visit with your girls in Colorado sounds great! That is definitely a place I'd like to visit someday.

Peyton was running a crazy fever the week of her preschool graduation so we had to miss it

Hopefully Miles will get over his fear. A trip to Disney is a good incentive to fly.

Hope you have a great day!

 

[sweetpeaandevie]

Yay, day 8 looks like it got much better!!! (well, besides having to throw the cupcake away )

My great grandmother was in a wonderful assisted living place for the last 15 years of her life.....maybe if he went to tour one he would change his mind good luck with them, I hope you can find some compromise...

Glad you had a great Easter. We were busy, busy....like always. I hope to do an update sometime this week. I had to work ten hours on Sunday but it was at double pay so I'm good with that. ...all the extra is supposed to go towards the trip (we'll see if that works out...)

I do hope you can keep the tradition going in April.

 

[Iamthequeen]

Sorry I haven't been around lately, but I'm recuperating from surgery on my sinuses. I certainly did not expect to be laid so low for this long.

Sorry to hear that both of you were sick. Nothing worse than being sick on vacation, but glad to hear that things are looking up.

Good to hear your Mom is home, but sorry to hear that she is still having problems. My parents are both gone, so I don't have those issues to deal with, so I can' t offer any advice. Just a hug.

I hope that Miles will get over his fear of flying and you can take him in April. If not, maybe we'll see you in September!

 

[disneychic2]

That's fantastic news.. everyone seems very happy! I hope you can persuade your parents into the assisted living program. some of the places are really nice.

YAY another fun trip in the works!!!

My Mom really wants to go, my Dad…stubborn man!! There is a very nice one 5 minutes from where they live. They toured it a few years ago with some group and Mom really liked it. Dad may have no choice eventually, but there's a waiting list and I just would like them to get on that NOW. We'll see how it works out.

Yes, planning a trip would get my mind on better things!!

Glad you had a good Easter!

It doesn't sound like an option - but maybe your dad would consider checking out some assisted living facilities? Some are like your dad thinks, just a place to go and wait to die; but some of them are really great and help get the residents active and engaged. It's just like finding the right house in neighborhood - there's something for everyone but what is a good fit for you might not work for someone else. Just a thought, although from what you wrote it sounds like he has his mind mad up.

Yes, they've toured one near where they live, but Dad gets something in his mind, and that's it. My sister may come up from Texas so she and I can go look at a few places and get brochures and prices etc. You are so right, they are not all created equal! Thanks for the thoughts.

Your kids certainly spread out all over the place, didn't they? Colorado, Virginia, and Florida (right?). I think a visit with your girls in Colorado sounds great! That is definitely a place I'd like to visit someday.

Yes, you got them all right. Plus, one in Ohio yet. He's 2 1/2 hours away and we don't see him much. Colorado is beautiful, but it's so far away!!!

Peyton was running a crazy fever the week of her preschool graduation so we had to miss it

Aww, so sad. Part of me says save "graduation" for high school where it really means something. Another part says, "how cute are these kids??"

Hopefully Miles will get over his fear. A trip to Disney is a good incentive to fly.

Hope you have a great day!

I'm not even sure where he gets that fear. He doesn't know much about it. He's not fearful of much else. A year can make a lot of difference, too.

Yay, day 8 looks like it got much better!!! (well, besides having to throw the cupcake away )

It was. But I did HATE throwing that beauty away. That just tells you how off I was.

My great grandmother was in a wonderful assisted living place for the last 15 years of her life.....maybe if he went to tour one he would change his mind good luck with them, I hope you can find some compromise…

Thanks! I just want them to be in a safe environment. Mom is weak and Dad's legs are so unreliable, I just wish he would have an open mind about this. He did tour one a few years ago, but he just is so stubborn! I think it's harder for a man to admit he can't take care of things the way he used to. Maybe.

Glad you had a great Easter. We were busy, busy....like always. I hope to do an update sometime this week. I had to work ten hours on Sunday but it was at double pay so I'm good with that. ...all the extra is supposed to go towards the trip (we'll see if that works out...)

I do hope you can keep the tradition going in April.

I miss those busy Easters with the kids all excited and going to church in all the pretty outfits and spending time hunting/hiding eggs with lots of family around. Working for double pay is good! More Disney $$$$

Yes, I'm hoping in another year he'll be ready. If not, Selah is ready to go back!!!

Sorry I haven't been around lately, but I'm recuperating from surgery on my sinuses. I certainly did not expect to be laid so low for this long.

Oh, Tess! I forgot all about your surgery. I'm so sorry. I have been praying for you every day, though. I hope by now you are feeling even better. It can really knock you for a loop and mess with you in ways you never knew. Feel better!

Sorry to hear that both of you were sick. Nothing worse than being sick on vacation, but glad to hear that things are looking up.

Yes, you know a little something about being sick on vacation, unfortunately. We had several good days, so all was not lost.

Good to hear your Mom is home, but sorry to hear that she is still having problems. My parents are both gone, so I don't have those issues to deal with, so I can' t offer any advice. Just a hug.

Thanks! Never underestimate the power of a hug. Even a virtual one!

I hope that Miles will get over his fear of flying and you can take him in April. If not, maybe we'll see you in September!

My daughter wants us to take him whether he wants to fly or not. I told her there was no way I was dragging a child onto a plane against his will. She thinks he'd get over it right away and have a good time. I think he would hate Dan and I forever and never trust us again! So, here's hoping he wants to go.

****************************************************************

Did you guys see that the Mine Train ride is slated to open May 2nd? I watched them testing it on YouTube and it looks like so much fun! I can't wait to ride it. Those of you who are going soon need to fill us in on how it is.

I'm getting the itch to go back to Disney. BEFORE next April. This happens to me and the next thing I know, I'm booked. However…we're saving for a cruise and a European vacation, so I need to be good. Help talk me off the ledge people. I'm thinking September is looking very good. Our favorite time to go. I seriously need a 12 step program!!!

Well, it's 4AM and I've had about an hour of sleep, so I'll try to get a couple hours in now. I have an appointment at 7AM with a retina specialist to see if I have a tear or hole in my retina. He'll take one look at my sleep-deprived eyes and think I'm in really bad shape!! Hope everyone has a wonderful day and an even better weekend. I just love you guys!!

 

[DMGeurts]

I am glad to hear that your mom is home... It's so hard to have aging parents. I am very glad that my dad went into assisted living with out complaint. I hope that your dad is able to see it differently, before he needs to. To be honest - it's like a big vacation community - LOL, my dad really likes it a lot.

That is wonderful about Dan's mom! I would love to be that age and still be self sufficient!

Well, there is always August - if you need an earlier trip. It's a bit warm there at that time though. LOL

I hope your appointment goes well today, and you are able to get some sleep!

Have a wonderful weekend Lois!

D~

 

[lovedonaldduck]

I think you came to the wrong place to have people talk you out of a Disney trip! I think we may become Spring Break people, although cutting our trips back to one a year is going to be so hard for me. I'm not comfortable taking Peyton out of school for more than a day or two for a Disney trip (we took her out for a week this year and helping her get caught up was a nightmare, mostly because she just didn't want to do it, so no more of that) so now we are limited to Spring Break, Summer Break, and Christmas Break to get a longer trip in. I don't have enough vacation left for another week long trip this year so it looks like it will be Spring Break again next year.

I can't wait to try out the Mine Train! And, if we don't make it back until next March Charlotte should be tall enough - she may even hit the 40" mark by then.

I hope your dad can be persuaded to move to an assisted living facility before he has to. It would be nice for you to have that peace of mind.

Hope you get good news on your eyes this morning. We are taking Charlotte to the doctor this afternoon for her ear re-check.

 

[disneychic2]

I did okay at my appointment. I'm typing this with blurred vision still. Hope it gets back to normal soon. So, I did have a small tear in my retina, but he was able to repair it while I was there. He said it would hurt and it really did! But, I got through it and Dan brought me home and I slept for 4 hours. I never did get to sleep before we left, which made me so tired I fell asleep despite the pain. Yay! I'll come back and do my responses when I can see a bit better, but wanted to let you know all is well.

 

[mdsouth]

I was sorry to hear about your torn retina. Glad to hear that the surgery was able to fix it though it was painful for you.

Try to take it easy and get some much needed sleep. We will be here when you are ready to share more on your trip.

I am so happy to hear some good news for Jennifer! I hope she continues to exceed the doctors' expectations and is able to be chasing her kids around as soon as possible. It makes me stop and think about all of the things I am able to do for/with my girls that I take for granted and she is missing out on right now. I will continue to pray for her and her family and for the blessing you have been able to be for them during this difficult time, Lois, and for Dan who is surely missing you at home but sharing you so generously and allowing you to be where you need to be. I am sincerely touched by what your family is experiencing right now and what you have sacrificied to be there for your little girl. It may be the weekend before I am able to start my trip report. Lots of catch up work to do before the end of the month and so many meetings on my calendar this week! I still need to get the majority of the pictures from my cameras to my computer and then deal with Photobucket.

Let us know when you get started so we can check it out. I wanted to write a TR for my trip in Feb but haven't had the time. I teach so I am crazy busy right now. I think I will go ahead and write it but won't start posting it until June when I have lots of time to get the pix on photobucket.

 

[mdsouth]

I wanted to share that I loved the drawings of Pooh that you and Dan did! Cute comment about your Pooh having the mumps.

The drawing class is something I would love to do with my DD. She is very artistic and loves to draw.

We did not get to Hollywood Studio this trip, but she did find a really cool book that shows you step-by-step how to draw the characters. They had a couple of books to choose from. We picked the more expensive one because it had lots more characters in it than the other one. We found it at MK by Goofy's Barnstormer in the store that looks like a big circus tent.

My DD added some drawings of the characters to her autograph book and I plan to have her do the same when I create my big scrapbook of our trip this summer. I just have a little over a month left until summer is here and I can relive my Disney trip via scrapbooking and more time on the DIS!!!:

 

[disneychic2]

I am glad to hear that your mom is home... It's so hard to have aging parents. I am very glad that my dad went into assisted living with out complaint. I hope that your dad is able to see it differently, before he needs to. To be honest - it's like a big vacation community - LOL, my dad really likes it a lot.

I'm really so glad your Dad is enjoying his new environment. I do wish my Dad would look at the positive aspects as opposed to what he would be giving up. But, I know it's hard for him being with my Mom day in and day out too with her constant repeating of things and forgetting. Maybe that will be what makes him want to go one day.

That is wonderful about Dan's mom! I would love to be that age and still be self sufficient!

She is a darling woman!! I'm so blessed to have her as my MIL! She is proof that aging isn't so bad if you have your health. I hope Dan has plenty of her genes!

Well, there is always August - if you need an earlier trip. It's a bit warm there at that time though. LOL

Yeah, just a bit warm!

I hope your appointment goes well today, and you are able to get some sleep!

Have a wonderful weekend Lois!

D~

Thanks D~! I did have a wonderful, but quiet weekend. I hope yours was good as well.

I think you came to the wrong place to have people talk you out of a Disney trip! I think we may become Spring Break people, although cutting our trips back to one a year is going to be so hard for me. I'm not comfortable taking Peyton out of school for more than a day or two for a Disney trip (we took her out for a week this year and helping her get caught up was a nightmare, mostly because she just didn't want to do it, so no more of that) so now we are limited to Spring Break, Summer Break, and Christmas Break to get a longer trip in. I don't have enough vacation left for another week long trip this year so it looks like it will be Spring Break again next year..

I think you're quite right. Maybe that was my subconscious thought! HaHa

I totally get what you're saying about taking kids out of school. As they get older, it gets harder. Since you're experienced, you'll be able to get a lot more done during the busier times than other people, so that's an advantage.

I can't wait to try out the Mine Train! And, if we don't make it back until next March Charlotte should be tall enough - she may even hit the 40" mark by then..

Oh, I hope Charlotte is tall enough by your next trip. That's so disappointing when one can ride and the other one really wants to but can't! And the Mine Train looks awesome!

I hope your dad can be persuaded to move to an assisted living facility before he has to. It would be nice for you to have that peace of mind..

Thanks! At this point, I would be happy if he would just get on the waiting list. I really am concerned about the two of them struggling to help one another. I just try to be there as often as I can.

Hope you get good news on your eyes this morning. We are taking Charlotte to the doctor this afternoon for her ear re-check.

Bless her heart. How was her check-up? How is she doing sleeping in her bed? Has she adjusted to no bottle? I hope so, poor thing!

I was sorry to hear about your torn retina. Glad to hear that the surgery was able to fix it though it was painful for you..

Try to take it easy and get some much needed sleep. We will be here when you are ready to share more on your trip..

Thanks! I was fine by Sunday. Now I just have to wait for my regular check up to get new glasses, which I need desperately. Can't have that until the retina guy checks me out in 3 weeks. Thanks for hanging with me!

Let us know when you get started so we can check it out. I wanted to write a TR for my trip in Feb but haven't had the time. I teach so I am crazy busy right now. I think I will go ahead and write it but won't start posting it until June when I have lots of time to get the pix on photobucket.

Boy this time of year is so busy for your teachers! It's funny, but we never realized our teachers were counting the days until summer vacation as much if not more than we were. I think that's a great idea to go ahead and write your report at once. Wish I'd done that! Let me know when it's up.

I wanted to share that I loved the drawings of Pooh that you and Dan did! Cute comment about your Pooh having the mumps.

Thanks! It was such a fun experience!

The drawing class is something I would love to do with my DD. She is very artistic and loves to draw.

Oh, she would love it! I hope you get there one day.

We did not get to Hollywood Studio this trip, but she did find a really cool book that shows you step-by-step how to draw the characters. They had a couple of books to choose from. We picked the more expensive one because it had lots more characters in it than the other one. We found it at MK by Goofy's Barnstormer in the store that looks like a big circus tent.

I may check that out for our oldest granddaughter. She is also very artistic. She's only (almost) 7, but she just loves to draw. I'm sure your DD is getting a lot of great instruction with that book! Maybe one day she'll even work for Disney!!

My DD added some drawings of the characters to her autograph book and I plan to have her do the same when I create my big scrapbook of our trip this summer. I just have a little over a month left until summer is here and I can relive my Disney trip via scrapbooking and more time on the DIS!!!:

What a great idea for the autograph book and the scrapbook! I always think I'm going to scrapbook our trips and somehow it never gets done. Good for you for actually doing it! I hope the remainder of your school year flies by. What grade do you teach? I think teachers are unsung heroes! You put so much of yourself into everything you do. Thank you for your dedication and for all those young lives you impact for the good!

 

[Chicago Mo]

Oh My goodness! SO SORRY to hear about your eye! OUCH!!! I hope your doing better and was able to rest over the weekend?!?!


Sorry i am NOT talking anyone out of a Disney vacation..

 

[lovedonaldduck]

Eye pain is the worst, glad they were able to repair it right away.

Charlotte's ears are ok. She had one perfectly clear ear and one that still has fluid. The doctor changed her prescription and we go back in May to see if we can get the all clear for the summer. She is doing great with no bottle, although bedtime is a struggle. If she doesn't have a nap, she is exhausted by bedtime so I can get her to sleep in her crib - but most nights she wakes up in the middle of the night wanting me. On nights that she naps (all weekdays) she is a little night owl and I have to lay down with her in the spare bedroom to get her to sleep. Most nights, I end up sleeping with her all night or the majority of the night in the spare bedroom. It's not ideal, but I'm thinking once we get her big girl bed I can get her back to sleeping by herself. My dad is refinishing my childhood bed for her room and he thinks he'll have it done this week so then we can get her back in her room. Thanks so much for asking about her!

Peyton ended up with strep throat this weekend so we weren't able to do anything outside of the house on Saturday. Yesterday we went to my parents' house and we were able to swim. Charlotte is a little fish and completely fearless. 2 1/2 seems way too young for real swim lessons but I think she might be ready so we may give it a try this summer.

It sounds like assisted living might be really good for your dad - giving him a chance to socialize and probably meet other people in a similar situation. I know it's hard. My friend actually flew out and spent a week helping her parents move into an assisted living facility. Her mom has alzheimers and freaked out about the whole situation and eventually her dad decided it was easier to just move back to their house. All of their kids are here in Florida and they are in Kansas so I know my friend and her siblings are constantly worrying about their parents.

My dad's work schedule has changed again - we typically go to Disney with my parents for the extra help with the girls and because I love that they are young and active enough to enjoy this time with the girls. My dad travels outside of the country about 50% of the year for work so coordinating a trip with his schedule can be difficult. I'd like to go ahead and book for Spring Break next year but there's no way to know if he'll be home then or not. He will be home more this summer than we thought so it's hard not to try and book a summer trip knowing everyone will be able to go and I don't know when that will happen again!

Once I am able to get going on my trip report, I will let everyone know. I think May will be the month

 

[disneychic2]

Oh My goodness! SO SORRY to hear about your eye! OUCH!!! I hope your doing better and was able to rest over the weekend?!?!


Sorry i am NOT talking anyone out of a Disney vacation..

Yeah, I pretty much did nothing all weekend. Milked it for all it was worth!

HaHa! I figured no one would try to talk me out of a trip. Guess I'll have to proceed...

Eye pain is the worst, glad they were able to repair it right away.

Yes, I'm glad too. I didn't have too much time to get worked up about it. I have a very high tolerance for pain, so I wasn't too worried actually.

Charlotte's ears are ok. She had one perfectly clear ear and one that still has fluid. The doctor changed her prescription and we go back in May to see if we can get the all clear for the summer. She is doing great with no bottle, although bedtime is a struggle. If she doesn't have a nap, she is exhausted by bedtime so I can get her to sleep in her crib - but most nights she wakes up in the middle of the night wanting me. On nights that she naps (all weekdays) she is a little night owl and I have to lay down with her in the spare bedroom to get her to sleep. Most nights, I end up sleeping with her all night or the majority of the night in the spare bedroom. It's not ideal, but I'm thinking once we get her big girl bed I can get her back to sleeping by herself. My dad is refinishing my childhood bed for her room and he thinks he'll have it done this week so then we can get her back in her room. Thanks so much for asking about her!

I think the big girl bed just may be the ticket. Hope so for your sake. I'm glad the one ear was clear and I hope you get a good report on the other one next month. Keep me posted.

Peyton ended up with strep throat this weekend so we weren't able to do anything outside of the house on Saturday. Yesterday we went to my parents' house and we were able to swim. Charlotte is a little fish and completely fearless. 2 1/2 seems way too young for real swim lessons but I think she might be ready so we may give it a try this summer.

Oh no! Strep is the worst! But sounds like she bounced back remarkably if she was able to swim. That's great! As for 2 1/2 too young, I think she would do well. She seems to be showing signs of being a natural. I had my first daughter in swim lessons at 7 months. She swims like a fish now and was on the high school swim team for four years. Does the swimming aggravate Charlotte's ears at all?

It sounds like assisted living might be really good for your dad - giving him a chance to socialize and probably meet other people in a similar situation. I know it's hard. My friend actually flew out and spent a week helping her parents move into an assisted living facility. Her mom has alzheimers and freaked out about the whole situation and eventually her dad decided it was easier to just move back to their house. All of their kids are here in Florida and they are in Kansas so I know my friend and her siblings are constantly worrying about their parents.

It's funny, my Mom is the one who wants to go. She doesn't get out much and would love to make some friends and socialize more. My Dad goes out to lunch with friends once a month and volunteers at a Military Museum, so he gets out more than she does.

That's so sad about your friend's parents. It's just such a hard thing to watch your parents grow old when they have health issues.

My dad's work schedule has changed again - we typically go to Disney with my parents for the extra help with the girls and because I love that they are young and active enough to enjoy this time with the girls. My dad travels outside of the country about 50% of the year for work so coordinating a trip with his schedule can be difficult. I'd like to go ahead and book for Spring Break next year but there's no way to know if he'll be home then or not. He will be home more this summer than we thought so it's hard not to try and book a summer trip knowing everyone will be able to go and I don't know when that will happen again!

Once I am able to get going on my trip report, I will let everyone know. I think May will be the month

I see where it would be very difficult to plan with your Dad's schedule being so changeable. If you did book a summer trip, would it be for THIS year? That would be exciting!!

I plan to book our trip with Miles for next April as soon as I can. If it doesn't happen, I'll just change our dates. I'll wait on the airfare until it is certain he'll go. That could work for you too. How far in advance does he get notice he has to fly out? Can he schedule vacation months in advance or does he have to wait and see what's happening? That definitely makes it hard to plan. But you are so right. It is wonderful that your parents are active and want to be a part of your vacations! Enjoy that while you can!

Looking forward to your trip report…whenever you get a chance.

 

[disneychic2]

…at last!

I apologize right off the bat for the large photos. I usually size them down, but just didn't have the extra time to do that. Sorry.

After a fun filled morning and afternoon at HS, we headed back to our room to freshen up and relax for 30 minutes or so. Then we headed to the bus stop and our next destination…

MAGIC KINGDOM

We didn’t have to wait for a bus for long and there weren’t a lot of people at the bus stop, so we had our choice of seats. I was so excited to be going back to Magic Kingdom feeling so much better than the last time!

Now, I still hadn’t seen fireworks or a parade, so I was determined to do both on our last evening at Disney. Meanwhile, there were rides we wanted to do, so we headed to Haunted Mansion first. There was only the wait until the room emptied out and we were in. I just love this ride!




Next up we did Big Thunder Mountain RR and I got some pretty good shots of it. I love the detail of not only the ride, but the que area as well. I have such an appreciation of the thought and talent that went into every aspect of every attraction at Disney Okay, I couldn't find my photos, so here are a couple from our September trip:





While in that general vacinity, we rode POTC. Another favorite. I never get tired of this one. We only had a wait because we wanted the front of the boat, but we got on the very next one.



Next up was Mickey’s Philharmagic. This never gets old for me. I always crack up at Donald’s undignified exit! I also love to watch others’ reaction to it.

I'm pretty sure the next thing was Carousel of Progress. I know it's cheesy, but we both love it. Of course the song runs through our head the rest of our day, but it's all good!





And we couldn't leave the area without trying our hand at Buzz Lightyear, right? I stink at this, but it's fun anyway.



The people mover was closed while we were there, much to my sorrow. "Paging Mr. Morrow, Mr. Tom Morrow!" Love it!

Also, one of my favorite rides at MK was closed for referb:



As you know, we had to cancel a lot of wonderful ADRs due to our illnesses, so we took a chance and went to the podium at BOG, just in case someone had cancelled at the last minute. They gave us a beeper!!! We were ecstatic! He said it could be up to a two hour wait and we had to wait on the bridge, but we decided it was worth it. Actually, we went up to the gates and they let us sit on the stone ledge just inside the gates, so it wasn’t bad at all. We were seated 30 minutes later! Can we say Pixie Dust??? Yes!! We were in the Rose Gallery. I hope some day to eat dinner in the West Wing. We’ve eaten lunch in that room several times. Our very first dining experience was in the main ballroom. I sort of like the relative quiet of the Rose Gallery. Of course, I didn’t care where we ate. We were at BOG!!







I usually get the steak, but this time chose the Chicken Breast Provential, which was fabulous.





Dan gets something different every time and this night it was Herb Crusted Lamb Rack with mashed potatoes and asparagus, which he enjoyed very much.



The sad thing is, this room was half empty and I got the impression that the only reason they didn’t fill it was they didn’t have enough wait staff for it. Not sure if that’s accurate, but I’m sure they could have filled those tables with no trouble if it had been possible.

After our wonderful meals, we went outside to pouring rain and cold wind. It was about 7:30 or so. Reluctantly, we decided to head on back to our resort. Dan doesn’t care about fireworks so much, so I didn’t want to stick around just for me, so, back we went. Of course we left via Starbucks for Dan and the Main Street shops for me. Can’t remember what I got, maybe just ideas…

In spite of the rain, our last full day was awesome! I’m so glad we were able to salvage part of our vacation. We had so much fun!

Next up: Our last few hours at the parks. Which one(s)? will we revisit? I’ll bet you already know.

 

[sweetpeaandevie]

YAY! BOG walk up.....that's some pixie dust right there!!! I'm so glad you were able to end your trip on a good note.

glad to see you're feeling better with your eye. It's funny how quickly you can recover from things....seems like a torn retina would put you out for awhile...

 

[appleorchard]

I did okay at my appointment. I'm typing this with blurred vision still. Hope it gets back to normal soon. So, I did have a small tear in my retina, but he was able to repair it while I was there. He said it would hurt and it really did! But, I got through it and Dan brought me home and I slept for 4 hours. I never did get to sleep before we left, which made me so tired I fell asleep despite the pain. Yay! I'll come back and do my responses when I can see a bit better, but wanted to let you know all is well.

Oh, my goodness, you've really been through the mill, haven't you! I've enjoyed reading your trip report--we're also grandparents who enjoy our "alone" trips-- in fact, we're leaving for one in the morning! My DD and DGD just got back two weeks ago from a girl's trip. My DGD was very much like Charlotte on her first trip, she was completely overwhelmed and left the park (MK) with her crying hysterically our first day. I was ready to pull my hair out! Plus we had her father with us-- and what a mistake that was for everyone, including him lol.

I used to work for a group of retinal specialists and a torn retina is no joke--take proper care of yourself. We also lived in your neck of the woods in the 70's-- we lived in Medina and our youngest son was transferred to Akron Children's Hospital in the middle of a horrible blizzard in '77 after he was born 5 weeks early in Medina.

I'm also dealing with being a member of the "sandwich generation"-- my mom fell down her basement stairs and broke her elbow the day I was arriving in Michigan to celebrate her 85th birthday. My quick 3 day visit turned into 8 days. I've also spent long periods of time helping out children for various issues-- we have 5.

Really enjoyed your report a lot!