Looking forward to a crowd-free Disney Trip! **Update 9/4**

[photographymom517]

The only one of those I rode when I was pregnant was Kiliamanjaro Safari. I was about 4.5 months when I went. While my family rode the rides I hung out in the shops etc. It was actually really nice to be able to go at a slower pace, I learned to appreciate a lot more of the smaller things, the Disney touches etc. It's one of those things, yeah, you probably can ride some of those rides, but is it worth the risk?

Thanks for the info on the rides! I agree with everyone -- its not worth the risk.

I won't lie -- I'm a tiny bit disappointed because I've waited years for Luke to be tall enough to ride so many of them. At his doctor appointment last week, they measured him & he's finally 42"!!! But the rides will be there next year! And then Luke can ride them with his dad while I walk around & either go to character greetings or shop with the baby! (my two favorite things!!! LOL) I don't think my DH could handle Luke enough at this stage in his life to ride them alone this year -- but there's always next trip!

I will be 20 1/2 weeks pregnant when we leave for our trip! I definitely want to rest more. We've gone a few places this summer and its really made me stop & think. #1 -- my energy level isn't what it was before, #2 -- everyday between 4-7pm, I get exhausted -- to the point where the one day, I actually fell asleep online! #3 -- when we go somewhere that involves alot of walking, I need to take more bathroom breaks, more drinking breaks, and sit down on benches to rest more frequently! None of that is a problem though at Disney! The thought of sitting & relaxing sounds wonderful to me!

I just caught up after months! Congrats on your newest addition!!! I am loving your PTR!
41 days left!!!!!!!!

Hey! Glad to see you are back! No worries at all -- I am behind on most of my subs! I've started catching up this past week & hope to be completely caught up by the end of next week!

Thank you for the congrats! We are super excited!!!

When do you leave?

 

[photographymom517]

in addition to whatever they have listed, you could roughly go by- would i take my newborn/ infant on it? if you would, then i'd bet you'd probably be okay now.

Good point, Lauren! I'll take that into consideration! I think the only ride on that list that I'm going to attempt is Kilamanjaro Safari -- but I'll do what Brook suggested & ask for a front seat!

I avoided the teacups too, now that I think about it!

Uggg -- the teacups! I didn't even think of them! I don't really have that much of a problem with them & do enjoy them -- but they make me feel like I'm going to throw up on a good day! I can't imagine them pregnant!

Thanks for the reminder!

She's a crazy lady in the best way, she's SO much fun. My favorite is when she uses her "old lady" voice -- she says, in this wavering little voice, "oh, I don't know any better! I'm eighty-four years old!" She uses that voice when telemarketers call and they immediately apologize, hang up and never call back.

I had no idea they had warnings for pregnant women right on the maps (I never really look at the maps ) That's awesome! Is the nausea going away at all?

That is sooo funny about your grandma!!! I won't tell you what my dad does to telemarketers -- but if you PM me, I might share!

I had no idea there were warnings for pregnant women on the maps either -- and I read them at home AND at the parks!!! Not sure how I missed that!

I am starting to feel better. I still have days when I'm nautious but I haven't thrown up in awhile. I have been eating more, which is a great sign! Thanks for asking!!!

How's your dad's garden doing?

Joining in!

Now I have to go back, read, and catch up.

Ahhh I do remember you from Brook's reports!!!

Welcome! Take your time catching up, I'm pretty slow with updates these days, but will be posting one later tonight!

 

[photographymom517]

I apologize that so much time has gone by recently in between my updates. I’ve been working on catching up on all of your PTR/TR’s and that’s my first priority right now! I hope to catch up on everyone’s by the end of this week…so quit updating your reports until I catch up!!!

This update will be mostly a picture update & not much talking. I know that is VERY unusual for me to do, but I just wanted to share some “life pictures” with you & also include some updated pictures from the garden. I’ve taken pictures probably 5 or 6 times since the last update & haven’t posted any of them.

The first set of pictures is from Balloon Quest which is held every July. We have gone every year since Luke was born & he loves it!!! I think it’s one of his favorite events & that’s why I really, really want to take him to the International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, NM. I’m really hoping to go within the next 2 years or so. I purchased the video from the fiesta in 2009 along with the calendar, a program from the event, and some other stuff for Luke! He was sooo excited when it came in the mail and we watch the DVD all the time! It’s a really neat event and its HUGE – the spectators actually are able to walk right onto the field to watch the balloons take off! I think it would be amazing to see hundreds of balloons in the sky at once. They also have very uniquely shaped balloons at the fiesta.

Our event includes up to 25 balloons, but this year I don’t think there were more than 18. Luke’s favorite balloon was the red, white &blue one with the stars on it. Mine was the strawberry. We usually have at least one balloon (usually the sun) that isn’t “balloon-shaped” but this year, we didn’t have any. Also for our event, you are NOT allowed to go on the actual field. They block off the field with large vehicles as well as caution tape & you aren't allowed past. We always get a good view so its not a big deal -- but I think it would be amazing to see Albuqueque!!!

I would also like to thank my good friend, Katie(DisKate), for posting pictures of her local balloon event on her facebook page for me to see!!! She was even kind enough to write “For Hope & Luke” on one of the pictures – THANKS for thinking of us, Katie!!!! That was very sweet of you!

Also, if you notice we're wearing different clothes in the pictures, its because we went two different nights!!! We love it & they only have 4 launches all together so this year, we attended the 2 evening launches.

After the balloons launch, we always "chase" them. Usually they go out into the country to land & sometimes its in our township. It's really neat to see them land the balloon! This year, there was barely any wind. We couldn't figure out where they would land the balloons, but we took the back way home through town. We figured we might see which direction they were heading. It turned out to be very interesting!!! I have no idea how they did it & give them a ton of credit -- because they mostly landed in the middle of the city!!!

This is a picture of a local car dealership right in the middle of town!

And right above a shopping plaza

Luke's favorite balloon in a residential area!

(continued in next post . . .)

 

[photographymom517]

Also, Stephanie -- I took my Vera & it was wonderful to only have to carry a small bag!!!! THANK YOU!!!!

We chased the balloons again the 2nd night & got to see two of them land!!! They were still in town, but I was proud of myself for making a good decision! We saw a balloon heading down a street & I told my husband that I bet they were going to land them in a field near the church on that road. So we made a few turns & headed in that direction. We were the 2nd car to arrive and parked in the church parking lot.

Guess what?

One balloon landed across the street and one landed behind the church parking lot in the grass!!! Good decision!!!!

Coming Up -- Garden Update!!!

 

[photographymom517]

The next set of pictures is from the garden. We have been completely overwhelmed recently with the huge amount of veggies its producing! I wish more of my DIS friends lived close-by so I could share!!! I know it would be appreciated. And I would love to get rid of some of them!!!

Mostly everyone we know plants a garden as well, so we have been having trouble giving veggies away. We are freezing some & I may visit a friend to see if I can borrow her canner. Although I’m not sure I really feel up to that right now – I remember she canned when she was pregnant & she told me it was miserable. She was on her feet for over 12 hours if I remember correctly & she was exhausted for days afterwards. I’m pretty sure that she was over 6 months pregnant at the time though.

If anyone has recipes for tiny tomatoes or green peppers, I would greatly appreciate it!!!


Garden pictures from the last month or so . . .

Tomatoes -- you can see the Tiny Tims on the left-hand side

I love that Shutterfly takes the date stamp from my photo & puts it on their site. So helpful when I'm trying to figure out when a photo was taken!!!

Garden pics from July 17th -- first, watermelons -- they are really branching out now!!!

The Tiny Tims and larger tomato plants -- unfortunately I forgot to take pictures until we were half done picking the red/orange ones! So you see mostly green ones -- but you can still get an idea of how many there are!

One out of 4 of our cucumbers. For some reason, its very hard to grow cucumbers and zucchini here. At our old house, we had sooooo many of both that we could barely keep up with giving them away & eating them. My husband & I were BOTH taking bags of them to work every day for weeks & somehow our refrigerator was still full of them!!!

Its one of the few things I actually get hungry for. I love our grocery store's "sweet vinegar and oil" dressing with cucumbers!!! YUM!!!

These are HOT HOT HOT peppers!!! Yikes!!! I will never grow these again. We have like five million of them & they are sooo hot! Hot foods do not bother me at all. I can seriously sit down & eat one of those peppers they put in your salad at Olive Garden -- you know the one & only super hot green pepper? Yep, I eat it without blinking an eye!!!

But these peppers are horribly hot & I will not be eating anymore of them.

Here are the awful peppers again -- this pic was taken this evening!

(continued in next post . . . )

 

[photographymom517]

Watermelons -- they've really branched out -- we also have 3-4 small watermelon that are about 4-6" each and a ton of tiny little watermelon that are about half the size of a golf ball.

And finally, some of the tomatoes I picked tonight!

 

[photographymom517]

The final set of pictures is from a boat ride we took last weekend. We live near a State Park – about 15 minutes away – and often go on walks, have picnics, or go to local events there. For as many years as we’ve walked there, we have never gone on the boat tour before! I did attend a church picnic once & we rented the entire boat for the tour – but I was only around 9 or 10 years old at the time. I have some memories of that day but not many. We had a very nice, relaxing day! I can honestly say it’s the most I’ve relaxed in months.

Luke loved the boat ride. He paid very close attention to everything the tour guide was saying. He did ask me some questions throughout the tour & seemed very interested in the answers. The tour was an hour and a half & he was extremely well-behaved the entire time! I was impressed!

He was a little unsure of the moving boat at first & asked me if it was ok to sit or lay on the floor. I told him it was ok because

1) I figured once the boat moved & the tourguide began to talk, he would sit back in his chair

2) all of the people on the boat seemed very nice & talked to Luke & seemed ok with kids/kids behavior and

3) there were chairs set up on the boat in aisles & I was in the front and my husband & Luke sat behind me in the second row so when Luke laid on the floor, he wasn’t in anyone’s way.

After a few minutes, he sat up on the chair beside my husband & even occasionally looked out the open window. I went out on the deck twice to take photographs. If kids wanted to go out, they were allowed but had to put on a life jacket. Luke didn’t want to go out so we didn’t do that.

It was a very nice tour of the lake & we even had the opportunity to see 2 bald eagles!!! It was a neat experience but I was kicking myself for not taking my zoom lens! I’m trying to Photoshop the pictures but I know I could’ve gotten much better ones with the zoom.

Osprey -- I promise after I fix these in Photoshop & zoom in, I will post better pics!

Believe it or not, this is the picture of the 2 bald eagles. Its terribly hard to see -- but if you look towards the left top of the picture, there are two little white dots. That's the top of their heads.

Up next -- a MNSSHP update along with Magic Kingdom plans!!!

 

[SoonerGirl]

Love all the balloon pictures - very pretty! My mom has been to the one in Albuqueque once and loved it.

I'm so jealous of your garden and would gladly take some of your vegis off your hands! It has been so hot and so dry here this summer that we are even having trouble keep our trees alive, let alone small plants

 

[Stefy]

Hey Stefy -- how many days until you leave??? I cannot even imagine how excited you must be!!!!

I have been eating more -- its on & off, but its much better than before! I still have days occassionally when I can't eat alot -- but I just make up for it on those days when I'm super hungry!

I have been doing alot of planning & alot of thinking -- and you are right!!! I really need to just focus on enjoying the trip! It's important to me that I really take in Luke's reactions/emotions on this trip since it will be his last "solo" vacation with us! On our next trip, we'll have a little one with us! I'm already trying to convince DH we still need to take my 30th birthday trip next year -- after all, Luke went to Disney when he was only 10 months old!

I caught up on your report the other night!!! But I want to go through & read it again to see which park days match up for us. I changed a few days around & we might add another MK day!

Hi Hope

It will be four weeks tomorrow that we fly off to Italy and tomorrow marks 1 month exactly until the big day, so excited

Glad to hear you are doing well. Loving your updates, your garden is coming along really well. So very cool The balloons look cool, the strawberry is my favourite too

You are going to have a great time and seeing it through Luke's will be so special as it sounds like there will be a lot of firsts for him. Are you guys doing Photopass?

Let me know if we overlap would be lovely to say hello to you guys

 

[Megablocks]

That is sooo funny about your grandma!!! I won't tell you what my dad does to telemarketers -- but if you PM me, I might share!

I had no idea there were warnings for pregnant women on the maps either -- and I read them at home AND at the parks!!! Not sure how I missed that!

I am starting to feel better. I still have days when I'm nautious but I haven't thrown up in awhile. I have been eating more, which is a great sign! Thanks for asking!!!

How's your dad's garden doing?

Oh, I will so be FB messaging you later for this! My dad used to talk to them, and I still remember one time (this was several years ago), he was talking to one and my mom walked in the room, knowing very well that he actually talked to them, and asked, "what are you DOING?" He said, very quickly, "I can't, my wife won't let me" and hung up. I STILL remember that very clearly!

My dad's garden is doing pretty decent, I think. He got two cucumbers and I think the corn is growing really well. Not sure about the tomatoes. I think he also got some kind of peppers. If we were closer I am sure my dad would happily take your super hot peppers off your hands

I love the balloon pictures, I so wish they had something like that around here but the part of Mass I live in, there are no big, open areas. It's why going to Ohio is SO different to me; there's huge open fields in so many places, and it's so flat! It's the opposite of where I live in so many ways. It's big and open, it's flat, the people are super friendly, there are farms...

 

[jenneth79]

What lovely pictures! I have been to Albuquerque for the balloon festival, though I didn't even know it was going on at the time. (I was there for work.) It is simply breathtaking to see all the balloons gliding up.

I'm quite jealous of your garden! My little patio garden hasn't been doing so well. My herbs are just fine, but the tomatoes are less than abundant, and I spent the last month chasing birds off the peppers! Hopefully I'll get a new crop since I put in some mylar pinwheels.

Can't believe your trip is so close!!!

 

[brookelizabeth]

Great pictures Hope! The balloon launch sounds like so much fun. Henry would be mesmerized. I don't think he's ever seen one (other than at DTD maybe! )

I wish we lived close, I'd happily take some of those veggies!

 

[Princess.Rachel]

[

Hey! Glad to see you are back! No worries at all -- I am behind on most of my subs! I've started catching up this past week & hope to be completely caught up by the end of next week!

Thank you for the congrats! We are super excited!!!

When do you leave?

We leave the same day as you

 

[Native NYer]

Beautiful photos!
The balloons are so beautiful.
And your garden is amazing.

 

[photographymom517]

Love all the balloon pictures - very pretty! My mom has been to the one in Albuqueque once and loved it.

I'm so jealous of your garden and would gladly take some of your vegis off your hands! It has been so hot and so dry here this summer that we are even having trouble keep our trees alive, let alone small plants

We LOVE the balloons!!! Luke has actually been asking about them alot this past week. I feel bad that he has to wait another year to see them again. I'll definitely make sure he sees the balloon at DTD -- but he's used to them taking off & going way up into the air! I'm not sure he'll be happy with it strapped to a rope!

I soooo wish you did live closer -- I would love to share my veggies with you! My husband has been taking them to work the past few days, but we still have a TON!

We were just watching the weather channel & they were talking alot about Texas & Oklahoma & the lack of rain over the past few months

Somehow we managed to get a pretty equal amount of sunny days & rainy days this summer. We had about 2 weeks straight of 90+ temps & very dry weather. I'm not sure how we would've dealt much longer than that -- I was seriously about to go outside & water my entire yard!

Hi Hope

It will be four weeks tomorrow that we fly off to Italy and tomorrow marks 1 month exactly until the big day, so excited

Glad to hear you are doing well. Loving your updates, your garden is coming along really well. So very cool The balloons look cool, the strawberry is my favourite too

You are going to have a great time and seeing it through Luke's will be so special as it sounds like there will be a lot of firsts for him. Are you guys doing Photopass?

Let me know if we overlap would be lovely to say hello to you guys

Wow!!! I still can't believe its so close!!! I think I'm more excited for your wedding than I am for my own trip!!!

There definitely will be lots of firsts for Luke this trip!!! My husband & I were actually just talking about the rides at MK last night. We determined that last June, we rode: the Tea Cups, the Train, POTC, IASW, Swiss Family Treehouse, walked through ToonTown twice, and watched the parade! I seriously can't believe it

I just kept saying over & over again -- "WHAT exactly did we do on TWO days at MK?" LOL!!! I think we mostly just walked around and/or people watched. It was just so hard to do anything with the 120-180+ wait times -- the Fast Passes were gone almost everyday before 11am and it just wasn't worth rushing to the parks for rope drop everyday. A grumpy toddler isn't worth it!

I am very excited to see Luke's reactions to alot of the rides & shows!!! I traveled to Disney many times as a child & teenager -- but this is only my husband's 3rd trip as well as Luke's 3rd! So I love seeing his reactions to everything as well! I'm planning to send him solo on Splash Mountain, BTMRR, and Space Mtn at MK. I can't wait to see what he thinks of them!!! He'll also be going on Test Track & Mission Space at Epcot for the first time (and also solo!) I'm very anxious to see both of their reactions to their "firsts"

Yes, I am doing a PhotoPass share with my mom

Oh, I will so be FB messaging you later for this! My dad used to talk to them, and I still remember one time (this was several years ago), he was talking to one and my mom walked in the room, knowing very well that he actually talked to them, and asked, "what are you DOING?" He said, very quickly, "I can't, my wife won't let me" and hung up. I STILL remember that very clearly!

My dad's garden is doing pretty decent, I think. He got two cucumbers and I think the corn is growing really well. Not sure about the tomatoes. I think he also got some kind of peppers. If we were closer I am sure my dad would happily take your super hot peppers off your hands

I love the balloon pictures, I so wish they had something like that around here but the part of Mass I live in, there are no big, open areas. It's why going to Ohio is SO different to me; there's huge open fields in so many places, and it's so flat! It's the opposite of where I live in so many ways. It's big and open, it's flat, the people are super friendly, there are farms...

Oh Meghan! My dad and your dad would get into so much trouble together! I can just see it now!!!

Glad to hear his garden is doing well!!! I would gladly give him some of our hot peppers! They are really hot! We're making sausage tomorrow & throwing a bunch in with it & we've also frozen a bunch.

Yes, Ohio definitely does have ALOT of flat areas & farms!!! PA is like that too but we have alot of hills & bendy roads! I think OH is alot more open than PA is. It seems that all the farmers here have been selling their ground -- what used to be country now has huge developments & plazas

 

[photographymom517]

What lovely pictures! I have been to Albuquerque for the balloon festival, though I didn't even know it was going on at the time. (I was there for work.) It is simply breathtaking to see all the balloons gliding up.

I'm quite jealous of your garden! My little patio garden hasn't been doing so well. My herbs are just fine, but the tomatoes are less than abundant, and I spent the last month chasing birds off the peppers! Hopefully I'll get a new crop since I put in some mylar pinwheels.

Can't believe your trip is so close!!!

Wow! I'm so jealous that you've been to Albuquerque! Like I said in my update, I bought the DVD of the live event from 2009 and it's amazing just to watch it!!! I can imagine it would be 1,000 times nicer in person!!! One of my friends actually lives in Albuquerque & she went a few years ago & her pictures were amazing!

Our neighbor said that his garden has been eaten by both birds & rabbits. I'm not sure why they stay away from ours -- the only thing that I can think of is its because we have a cat!

I hope you have better luck with your peppers & tomatoes! Glad to hear your herbs are doing well! I've never tried to grow them before, but the people who lived here before us had a HUGE herb garden beside the garage.

Great pictures Hope! The balloon launch sounds like so much fun. Henry would be mesmerized. I don't think he's ever seen one (other than at DTD maybe! )

I wish we lived close, I'd happily take some of those veggies!

Between you, Michelle, and MeMom, I could get rid of all my extra veggies!!!

The tomatoes & peppers are great at first -- just a few at a time! But after about a week or so, they just take over the entire garden! You'd think that we would learn & only plant 6 plants -- but every year, we get at least 2-3 dozen of each.

I think next year, we're going to cut down on tomatoes & peppers and plant corn, pumpkins, and more cucumbers & zucchini

I know of a few balloon events in NY but I'm not sure how close they are to you. I'll do some research & get back to you! I also forgot to tell you, I haven't forgotten about the D23 event in Cali -- I'm still waiting to hear back from a few gals I know!

We leave the same day as you

Thanks for the reminder! I DID know that!!! So sorry I forgot!

Beautiful photos!
The balloons are so beautiful.
And your garden is amazing.

Thank you!

 

[photographymom517]

Disney update!

I booked the Wishes Dessert Party at Magic Kingdom!!! I was stalking the Disney site for the September dates to be released. Typically they are released 30-45 days out -- but sometimes it can be as early as 60 days out.

I kept checking the site & the August dates weren't even open yet. It was making me nervous but I knew I heard rumors of the Dessert Party being extended through Fall 2011. I also found a thread here on DIS that taught me a little "cheat" -- instead of clicking on the calendar to find your dates, you type the date into the box!

So for instance, if you were looking for August 23, you would type 08/23/2011 in the box instead of clicking that date on the calendar & searching for it! I guess its important to have the zeros so if you're going to try this trick, make sure you use them!! I know of at least 5 people here on DIS who booked this way. They were actually able to book earlier than when the dates were open on the website!!!

I checked everyday & one evening, I believe it was around 10:45pm, I noticed that August, September, and some dates in October were open!!! So I literally ran into the living room to find my credit card & book it!!!

For those who don't know, you have to pay in full for the Dessert Party when you book it.

I actually just checked the website & our date is completely full already!!! It really fills up quick so if you are planning this for your trip, make sure to book it as soon as you can! For us (including tax) it cost $64.94 for 2 adults & 1 child (age 3).

I can't wait!!! I'm really looking forward to this!!! I think its my special treat to myself!!!

This isn't my picture, I found it when searching AOL images -- but I think this will look alot like my first plate!!!

I also have NO idea why I haven't posted this yet -- but Luke has been potty trained for about 2 1/2 weeks now!!! I am thrilled!!!

Obviously not a picture of Luke, but I thought it was funny!

 

[Megablocks]

I am SO jealous but so excited that you got the Wishes dessert party booked! I'm hoping for it for January. I'm not sure if my dad and brother would be really interested in anything besides the desserts, but I know my mom would really like it, and I think Kailyn would, too. Thank goodness you figured out the mobile uploads on Facebook, now if you take pictures from there I can drool over them.

Also, way to go Luke! That's awesome!

Oh Meghan! My dad and your dad would get into so much trouble together! I can just see it now!!!

Glad to hear his garden is doing well!!! I would gladly give him some of our hot peppers! They are really hot! We're making sausage tomorrow & throwing a bunch in with it & we've also frozen a bunch.

Yes, Ohio definitely does have ALOT of flat areas & farms!!! PA is like that too but we have alot of hills & bendy roads! I think OH is alot more open than PA is. It seems that all the farmers here have been selling their ground -- what used to be country now has huge developments & plazas

Oh my gosh, they totally would. My friend's dad is hilarious and crazy as well and my friend said something about getting our dads together for a "playdate."

Ohio is really open, but the area where my family lives has started to get a lot more housing developments. It's still really open, but it's definitely gotten a lot more populated since my grandmother moved out there. When my grandmother moved to her new place last year, I don't think our GPS recognized the street name b/c her development was built where there had been basically a lot of nothing, and they had to create streets and street names in there. SO weird! I do love driving across Ohio and PA just b/c I like the flatness and openness of the highways and everything. It is weird to me, though, that where my family lives, in order to get to a mall, or really any kind of store that is not a grocery store (or antique store, or a Goodwill), you need to drive all the way to the nearest "big" city, which is Columbus. There's also no public transportation, which is always weird to me b/c I'm used to seeing buses all the time when I'm driving. Oh, and the people are really, really nice and friendly and have the cute southern-ish accents. Seriously, I can find so many differences!

 

[jenseib]

yay for the dessert party

 

[stephielela]

Yay for Luke! And Yay for the dessert party! I am considering booking the one at DLR, but it's super pricey, and I am not even sure it will be offered the days we are there. That's one of my biggest frustrations with DLR, nothing is available until 3 months out or less, even ADRs!