Oh the Pressure to do a PTR -- We're Home & Surprise Video up on Facebook

[KatMark]

Kathy, sorry I haven't been around much lately. Work hours and life have been insane, but hopefully will slow up soon at least for a little while. I wasn't completely absent as I was able to keep up at least using the DIS app on my phone, but it is too much of a pain to try and do replies that way, especially trying to multi-quote. Just know you are never far from my thoughts and love, even though it may seem that way at times........

No worries; I've been having a hard time keeping up myself. And I hate trying to respond on my Iphone...pain in the neck.

It is really hard to believe how time can pass so quickly, and the memories we still hold so precious about those near and dear to us! It is hard to believe it has already been two years since my Mom passed away. Please know I was and am sending out hugs to you during the good times, and the sad times too!

Hugs to you too, my friend.

Well, you ARE standing beside Dan, so you can't look too bad...........

Now that wasn't very nice...especially after we spoke so highly of you.

Always the thoughtful one!!!

I love kids...what can I say?

You need to get on the ball and get another trip in the works so you can fix that..............

I'll second that.

I'm guessing a common reaction when meeting Kathy for the first time..................



I'm betting a look Mark is very familiar with...........
You are pushing it my friend.

One and a Half Sweeties!!!

(sorry Kathy, you didn't think I would give YOU full credit, did you???)
Okay, that makes up for previous statements...but just a little bit.

Hopefully you will still say that after I finally get my turn to meet the increasingly popular Ms. Kath-ay!!!

Yeah, when is that going to happen, Marv?

It's nice to be loved! Uh, that IS love I'm feeling isn't it???

Absolutely!

Looks like Mom has had an influence on at least some of the decor!!!

Had nothing to do with that...all theirs (it's their favorite movie)

I tawt I taw a puddy tat!!!

Now that was funny.

Awwww, how sweet! Great Picture!!!

Thank you.

What wonderful news!!! So happy for Princess Juliana, and the rest of the family!

This news made my year!

 

[Minnie&Nana]

Kathy! I am so glad I went back several days to catch up or I;d have missed so much wonderful news!

First, the best news of all is Princess Juliana being cancer free!!! Happy tears!

LOVE the pics of the Chicago Meet - you all look so good...and the munchkins are adorable!

Did I see you ordered a dress for the wedding? Did I miss a photo of it? Congrats and I've no doubt you will be beautiful - only the bride will be lovelier.

You've been in my thoughts...your dad and Toby share a date...I am sorry I didn't post here or on FB.

The kids house is so cute..and I love that they have a finished basement (basements are unheard of around here).

The Engagement Party invitations are perfect! They are just the cutest couple.... you'll be on such a high from Disney and getting ready for the party that you'll not notice the exhaustion until it's all over...then I hope you can catch your breath...although you will have a very special trip to look forward to in December! What an incredible time it will be for Romeo! Bless your heart..and Nicki's ...for making it so special

(as well as the engagement party!)!

Going back to read some more...Mia is on vacation this week, so I actually have some real DIS time and can catch up! Can you believe Sophia will be 4 this weekend! She is having her Party at a School of Dance...then preschool on Wed and next Saturday she begins pre-ballet...where have the years gone? Hoping to get her to WDW next year! Fingers crossed...no one to take care of the pups and we will not board them, so we'll need some magic to make it happen!

Off to read....

 

[KatMark]

That is absolutely wonderful news!

It's THE best!

Awesome news for Juliana and her family!

Love the new house photos, thanks for sharing!

Only 19 days??? Can't wait to hear all about it!

Thanks for celebrating with us.

Down to 17 days down (and only 9-1/2 days of work).

Looks like a great new house! Nice work on the move-in.



That is awesome news!

It's a great starter house for the two of them. And they did awesome putting it together.

Juliana is a very special princess and I'm so glad for the news.

WOOT WOOT That is such great news for the family! It made my day and I don't even know them!

Suzi, they are a wonderful family (that's nice -- Tim, the dad) posts here on occasion. Here is his beautiful Princess:

awesome news on five years cancer free way to go little princess (and family of course)

Definitely worth these:

okay ill book a trip just so i can write a TR for you

Yes, Dan, I think you should.


she always has expresions like that, i think she is going to be a bigger clown that parker.

Oh, I can definitely see that!

notice how she is avoiding you and hasnt met you yet.

Brutal, just brutal.

yep only nice things were said about you my friend.

ABSOLUTELY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[KatMark]

looks like Markie and Alisha are settling in great! Markie must be very happy with his "man cave"

such wonderful news about our Princess Ana

only 19 more days, you must be getting very excited

Yes, the man cave is a hit with all.

Isn't it just the best news about Ana?

17 and counting (I just wish it would hurry up).

LOVE the new house...the kids look so happy!!

I can't believe your trip is so soon, we get there shortly after I can't even believe how the time has flown by!!

And WOOOOO HOOOOO for the awesome news for the little princess, that is just wonderful to hear!!

And this all means your wedding is getting closer and closer. Are you excited? Ready?

again for Princess Ana.

 

[KatMark]

Kathy! I am so glad I went back several days to catch up or I;d have missed so much wonderful news!

Hi, Christine.

First, the best news of all is Princess Juliana being cancer free!!! Happy tears!

It really is the best news of all. And I cried when I heard it (and I've yet to meet that little angel)

LOVE the pics of the Chicago Meet - you all look so good...and the munchkins are adorable!

Thank you...we had fun.


Did I see you ordered a dress for the wedding? Did I miss a photo of it? Congrats and I've no doubt you will be beautiful - only the bride will be lovelier.

No, I've not ordered a dress. I found one I liked online, but they didn't have it. Alisha has ordered her dress though and it is lovely like her.

You've been in my thoughts...your dad and Toby share a date...I am sorry I didn't post here or on FB.

No problem...I know it is a difficult day for both ofus.

The kids house is so cute..and I love that they have a finished basement (basements are unheard of around here).

And it's a very nice, clean basement. It's good to have that extra space (and since Alisha's clothese are in all the upstairs closets, Markie's closet is in the basement.

The Engagement Party invitations are perfect! They are just the cutest couple.... you'll be on such a high from Disney and getting ready for the party that you'll not notice the exhaustion until it's all over...then I hope you can catch your breath...although you will have a very special trip to look forward to in December! What an incredible time it will be for Romeo! Bless your heart..and Nicki's ...for making it so special

(as well as the engagement party!)!

Thanks; I'm very happy with the invitations. And you are probably right...I'll have two months to catch my breath before the next trip. And Nicki and I have been working so hard on the trip...I know Romeo is going to love it.

Going back to read some more...Mia is on vacation this week, so I actually have some real DIS time and can catch up! Can you believe Sophia will be 4 this weekend! She is having her Party at a School of Dance...then preschool on Wed and next Saturday she begins pre-ballet...where have the years gone? Hoping to get her to WDW next year! Fingers crossed...no one to take care of the pups and we will not board them, so we'll need some magic to make it happen!

Off to read....

I cannot believe Princess Sophia will be four already. That has gone way too fast.

We're still not sure what we are doing with Cookie in December.

 

[KatMark]

Sorry...I missed a few quotes and these are out of order.

so wait a minute.. isn't hubby on the disboards? and your ticker says surprise.. won't he see it?

am I nuts? lol

Hi, Jenn. Yes, you are nuts...but that's why I love you girlfriend. No, Mark is NOT on the DIS so it is safe to have a ticker (if I show him something on the DIS, I am very careful NOT to let him see anything I post.

Her dress is so cute and I love the wrestling engagement shots!

I really like Alisha's dress too and she will be stunnign in it; the wrestling shots crack me up every time I see them.

I can't believe you leave in 18 days, I'm excited/jealous for you! Your PTR is long, so Idk where too look, but are yall doing MNSSHP?

No, we are NOT doing MNSSHP this trip. We were very disappointed in it last year (loved it the first year). Instead, we are doing the Christmas Party in December.

Love the house, it must be nice for them to finally be all moved in!


YAY that is great news!!!

Thanks, Jen. They are so happy to be in their own place.

And thank you for dancing and celebrating with us for Princess Ana.

I missed it before, but just saw the post about Juliana.

I am SO EXCITED that her scan was cancer free.

Isn't that just wonderful? Better news could not have come for a better family.

Yay for princess Ana!!! Such a brave, strong girl! What a great day for Tim and his family.

Love the engagement picture Kath-ay. They make such a cute couple and you can see the happiness in both of their expressions. How sweet to throw an engagement party for them too. Boy are you going to be one busy chick! I'm sure your house is already in tip top shape, you always claim to be cleaning it or doing laundry! Are you going to post pics of the party?? I hope so!

How cute is their little house! They must be soooo excited. And they made you breakfast too. Love the cute pic of your boys sitting together. And super cute pic of you and Alisha sitting on your men's laps.

Can't believe how close your trip is getting too.

Molly, I knew you'd be as happy as me about Princess Ana. Despite all the grief you and I give Tim (timmy), we love them so much.

They are very happy; I hope they will always have that glow in their faces when they look at one another. I WISH my house was in tip top shape. With Mark's mom and all the running around we've been doing, I've not kept up with the cleaning. I have people coming to paint the outside of the house while we are gone, we'll get the carpet cleaned when we get back (have to love having a 14 year old dog who sometimes can't wait to get outside ), and I'll spend the Friday night before the party cleaning from top to bottom. Yes, I promise to post pics of the party.

Yes, they made pancakes, scrambled eggs with ham and cheese in them and bacon...it was quite good. They are trying to find a cooking class to go to together but no luck thus far.

Thanks..I like the pic of me and hubby too.

Yep, it's getting here...but not fast enough.

Well that was weird!! I was posting in my PTR and it ended up here.

So happy to hear prayers have been answered for Julianna.

I didn't get a notice you updated your PTR; I better go take a peak.

I am so happy too that all of our prayers were answered for Juliana.

 

[KatMark]

I got all responses done....

Now, I'm off to run a couple of errands on my lunch hour and then will be back with an update.

 

[Minnie&Nana]

I cannot believe Princess Sophia will be four already. That has gone way too fast.

When Sophia's birthday nears, I always think of the joy we were anticipating that year...and how your heart was breaking...

We're still not sure what we are doing with Cookie in December.

Oh, that's right...Andy will be with you! Could you drive her down to Markie the weekend before? How does Cookie feel about kitties? By the way, I am so happy Cookie is doing well...Jackie will be 17 on Saturday! Never thought she would still be with us after the two ICU stays when she was 15. We are all blessed!

 

[KatMark]

Oh, that's right...Andy will be with you! Could you drive her down to Markie the weekend before? How does Cookie feel about kitties? By the way, I am so happy Cookie is doing well...Jackie will be 17 on Saturday! Never thought she would still be with us after the two ICU stays when she was 15. We are all blessed!

Yes, Andy and Des will be with us. I'd have to take the day off before we leave to drive to Dubuque (it's a 3-1/2 hour drive in good weather) and then the day after to go and pick her up. I don't think she'd do well with a cat. One of Andy's friends may crash at our house while we're gone and take care of her (and I have a friend who can come mid-afternoon every day) or there is this really fabulous Dog Resort that I'm looking into.

She's hanging in there...but she breathes heavier and tires more easily, but she is still as lovable as ever.

 

[KatMark]

So I last left you, it was Friday, the 21st, and we were driving to Marco to get to the condo and start our second week of vacation. IF we arrive in the area early enough, we will call Nic and see if she wants to meet us at Starbucks before we drive to the Island and do our shopping and then collapse in bed. Collapse in bed you might be asking yourself? Well, yes, I have an important date on Saturday morning.

Romeo (who doesn't know this yet) will drive me to the Dunkin Donuts right before the highway so that Nicki does NOT have to drive all the way to the Island to get me. Are you asking yourself? Dunkin Donuts? They don't drink Dunkin Donuts. You are right..I don't, but Mark does and this makes life easier on Nic and that way Mark gets his coffee and I'll even treat him to a donut.

Nicki and I will THEN head here for our first stop of the morning:

After we drink our first coffee of the day, we will hit the highway and stop at the first mall of the day.

It dawned on me that I have NO photos of us shopping. I will have to remedy that this trip. Once we arrive at the mall, we will have our second

of the day (we have to do something while we wait for the stores to open ).

We will then hit the stores at our own pace...and what pace that is will depend on our mood. We will definitely stop at the Disney store as I always find something there to bring home with me and for some of my "adopted kids".

We will then head to mall number two where we will have lunch at Johnny Rocket's. This has become a tradition for Nicki and I...simple food before we have a big dinner with the boys later in the evening.

We'll do some more shopping and then hit the road to stop at Starbucks yet again on the way back to the Island where I will take a nap, Nicki will go home and take a nap and then the four of us will meet for dinner. We are thinking of going to the Chinese Buffet this night if they have all you can eat crab (which will please me immensely as it will be the second time I get all you can eat crab).

Sunday, Mark and I will probably hang at the pool all day (I think being the weekend, we will wait and go to the beach on Monday).

One of the views from the pool:

Monday will be beach day. Tuesday will be pool day. Wednesday will be beach day. Thursday will be pool day. Friday will be beach day. Do you see a pattern there? We might take one of the days and take the boat ride to Key West IF Todd and Nicki want a night off from us.



Nicki is in charge of ALL dining. We will probably do PF Changs just becasue we all love the food, Tommy Bahama's and we will definitely be back to

This is our other tradition...DaRuMa is always our last meal together.

Then we hit Starbucks for our final coffee and our goodbyes.

We always say there will be no tears and I was really good until Nicki started crying last year. Gee, we'll see each other in another 2+ months so maybe we can control ourselves this time. I'm thinking......




























NOT!!!!!!!!

We fly home on Saturday the 29th very early in the morning (Starbucks won't even be open on the ride, but it better be when we get to the airport).

Up next, some "minor" changes to our December plans.

****PICTURE added at Nicki's request:

 

[eandesmom]

Sunday, Mark and I will probably hang at the pool all day (I think being the weekend, we will wait and go to the beach on Monday).

One of the views from the pool:

Monday will be beach day. Tuesday will be pool day. Wednesday will be beach day. Thursday will be pool day. Friday will be beach day. Do you see a pattern there? We might take one of the days and take the boat ride to Key West IF Todd and Nicki want a night off from us.

Oh that sounds HEAVENLY! I want a trip like that with just Jeff.

 

[mommy2mrb]

sounds like a very relaxing time, with great friends and good food and LOTS of Starbucks

 

[annmarieda]

Sounds like a great second week! I love your pattern... beach..pool...beach. Or was it pool... beach.. pool

Trip is getting close. I dont' know about you...but I am starting to panic at how close fall is. I noticed my own ticker and thought. I am no where near ready!!!

 

[TarzansKat]

Love those plans. They sound relaxing and awesome.

 

[KatMark]

I was instructed to add a picture to my last update. Nicki says it is the best one of us (personally, I think my eyes look half closed, but whatever little sis wants).

 

[TarzansKat]

Aw, that is a great photo! Of all of you!

 

[MickeyNicki]

Aw, that is a great photo! Of all of you!

Isnt it tho? Thats why I told her to post it, we all look great! Many more pics to be taken very soon!

So the plan for Marco/Naples is the Dynamic Duo get here on Fri early evening so there may be Starbucks that night, if not we will for sure be shopping our butts off the next day.

We are non stop shoppers, hopefully I can score some new summer clothes that are cheap, the are all on clearance right now, making room for the winter stuff...like we need that in SWFL!

I think on Sunday we will go to Tommy Bahamas, that is a nice night to do it, not too busy. They have live music at night and the food is amazing! The fancy pants shops will be closed so its a nice time to window shop down 5th Avenue and 3rd Street South....the cost of one blouse is more than a car payment lol!

Your last day for sure will be DaRuMa, we all love this place!

The middle time? Well we just need to work on that dont we lol. Def want to meet you guys at the Sand Bar on Marco, Todd was hooked once you told him there is a huge jar of pickles on the table He wants to know if we each get our own jar!

 

[englishrose47]

Loved the group pix !!! I know a couple of Ladies who will be over the moon about Starbucks at Disney!!!!!!!

 

[that's nice]

Hey Kat! Looks like you had a great trip visiting the kids! What a great DIS meet with Dan too!

Thank you everyone for thinking of us. Juliana has been a trooper through it all. For those who don't know she was diagnosed just a few weeks past her 1st birthday. Her tumor was found by her pediatrician at her 1 year well checkup. This is what she looked like then:

And this is what she looked like today- her first day of school. My big 1st grader.

Kathy and Mark sent her a big bouquet of flowers today and seeing how my DIS time is basically non-existant these days I'm sure Kathy will share a picture with you when I text it to her tomorrow. Thank you Kathy for thinking of Juliana (and us!!!!!)

 

[KatMark]

I'll come back with responses tonight to everyone after the Cubs game. But as Tim indicated above, we sent flowers to our Princess Juliana to celebrate her very special day. And, as promised, Tim sent me a picture this morning. I have to post it because she is just too darn cute and it is such a special occasion: