Here's hoping the council sees the value of the addition and ignores the nut next door. 
Fingers crossed! I think what you have planned will be unobtrusive and blend in well. Although this sounds like a good alternative! "Evidently the whole neighborhood is coming. They must think that we are erecting a giant structure on the second floor including a huge pride flag that will encircle the entire house with turrets, gogo girl platforms and who knows what else?"
Jill in CO
Love those historical Long Beach homes.
Im not sure if this is update worthy, but I wanted to share. One of the things that I will need to make the Sausage Casserole is a stovetop to oven pot. I know that from my experience in the Villas, they do not have these. All the pots to use on the stovetop have handles that will not work in the oven, so my only choice was to pour the casserole into an oven proof dish and cover it with tin foil. I had set Fran with a mission that as she hit her Saturday morning garage sales to look out for one of these kinds of pots, but for the past couple months she has come up empty handed. So finally we began to price pots at retail stores, I was astonished that Smart and Final wanted $16.99 for the pot and another $4.99 for the lid! Later that day I was at a local grocery store and found the perfect pot for $7.99 with the lid included.
Rather than hold out for a garage sale, I just went ahead and got it. This will be great for our dinner the first night, and then we can use it again at the cookout for the Queso. We can keep it warm on the BBQ grill and it has no handles that will melt from the coals. We are going to dump a large item from our OL this Fall, so I can keep the pot in the OL for future visits.
OK, so lets get back to our Day to Day plans and hopes. Last trip we were so excited about being at WDW we were up early every single morning. I sure hope that we have that kind of adrenaline going for this trip! Our first full day of the trip or Day 2, September 30, we have an ADR for 9:05 at the Grand Floridian for 1900 Park Fare.
This is one of Frans favorite buffets, not for the characters, although we love Tiggr and Pooh, as well as the Mad Hatter, but our main reason for this particular buffet is the strawberry soup.
Im sure well have a great time meeting with the characters and fill ourselves until we are nice and full. They have a full buffet offering here with just about anything you want, eggs, bacon, oatmeal, lox, Mickey waffles, lobster benedict, they have something for everyone!
After we finish our breakfast we plan to head over to MK for our first DISmeet of the trip. Dhorner has her last day of her trip and she will be meeting up with PrincessInOz and her family (after their early breakfast at Crystal Palace), we are hoping that we can meet up with them and visit some attractions or just enjoy each others company.
There are a few things that we (I) really want to do that we missed on our trip in Jan/Feb. First is one of my favorite must do rides at MK, the Carousel of Progress. We were so focused on checking out NFL that we neglected some of our favorite places in MK. Another ride that I havent been on in years is the Peoplemover. Id like to revisit that ride again as well. Some of our other favorite must do rides are Mickeys Philharmagic, The Haunted Mansion and Poohs Ride. If Ariels ride is up and running, Id like to check that out if for nothing else than to see the queue, I hear that it is much better than DCA (it isnt hard to beat DCAs queue, there isnt anything to it!)
I suspect that if we even accomplish half of those attractions, we will be ready to go back to the room for a nap! Of course we will do some shopping on Main street before we head back to the room. Im not sure if we will grab some snacks in MK or on our way back to the VWL, or just make something in the room when we get back, well have plenty of provisions for sandwiches and other snacks. I may not even be hungry, but Im sure Fran will be. Well probably hang out in the room until around 7:30 PM. I may go down to the pool for a dip, or go around the resort for some pictures. I have some other DIS friends who might be on property and maybe meet up with them.
However, I end up spending the afternoon, we will get ourselves dressed up and ready for our dinner at Victoria and Alberts that evening. Im thinking that we would take the boat to the Contemporary and then take the monorail, but Fran may rather take a cab so as not to have to take her scooter. Well have to see.
Its been three years since I last ate there. We are in the main dining room and Im sure that will be plenty of food. Im not sure I could work up the appetite for the QV room and the Chefs Table absolutely kicked my butt! Since Ive already shown you all the meals Ive enjoyed there, Ill just share a few ambience shots.
They even bring you a stool for your purse.
The table setting is elegant
And of course you know about the food!
My only concern is getting home. Our reservation is for 8:45PM, dinner normally lasts about 3 hours. The MK has EMH until 11:00PM and from what I have read the boats run for an hour and a half after park closing. Theoretically we could catch the Monorail to the MK and the boat back to the VWL, but I suspect that we will be so tired and in a food coma that we will just get a cab to take us home.
Im imagining that this will be a magical day with some wonderful food and some great company. Plus we will ride some fun rides that I have not been on in quite some time. It should be a very fun day!
) and its so much easier and faster to just grab the cab and get back to the room.
!
. BONUS. For my mother to do this it's like finding out she has another family somewhere - so out of character I can't even begin. My siblings are D, D, D and me! My mother always, all these years, claimed that she ran out of D names with extended family. I always added that YOU MAKE NO SENSE. Things of that nature. 
The table setting is elegant
And of course you know about the food!
My only concern is getting home. Our reservation is for 8:45PM, dinner normally lasts about 3 hours. The MK has EMH until 11:00PM and from what I have read the boats run for an hour and a half after park closing. Theoretically we could catch the Monorail to the MK and the boat back to the VWL, but I suspect that we will be so tired and in a food coma that we will just get a cab to take us home.
Im imagining that this will be a magical day with some wonderful food and some great company. Plus we will ride some fun rides that I have not been on in quite some time. It should be a very fun day![/COLOR][/SIZE]
Can't wait to hear Alison.
Nice find on the pot!
Looks like a fantastic day. I would just grab the cab after V&A. I'm usually "done" after V&A (and a little tipsy!
Jill in CO
Just in! Got a lot of catching up to do! Love the photos! Can't wait to read it all
Take your time, it's a while until both of our trips!I would just get the cab... No use stressing after Suharto a wonderful meal!
Great pot! I need something like that
Please make it a double.
Thanks Alison. I took a weekend off from looking after said parents and all he!! broke loose!
My mom is declining rapidly at this point but I recently found out, through the dwindling boundaries of dementia, that I was named after a soap opera character who was married ten times
No crazy crazy CRAZY weekend. Men. Chilean ska. Mexican Electronica. 3 AM ganga smells from my terrace. Sexual comments I actually needed to google.
I'm so gone.
Haven't even caught up yet.
I watched Fran witness her parents both go downhill. It was stressful on both of us, so I know how you're feeling. I'm not sure if your mom is still at home, but it's so stressful when they are in a nursing facility. My MIL thought that they kept bringing her to the morgue and all the people in the beds around her were dead bodies. That was just one of her scenarios. Hang in there!
I hope that the folks were not on your personal terrace. Otherwise, you need a better bouncer at your parties. 
Here's some pixie dust for a smooth hearing this week. I was chuckling when I noticed the addition is larger then the house I'm in.
Nice score on the pot! Also, another vote for a cab for before and after V & A.
The place is only three bedrooms as it is right now. I think the addition will double the size.
Of course it will me a magical day, Alison. I smiled and sighed just reading about it.
I was going to say take the cab but that boat ride is so lovely at night.
What an experience. V&As. One day. It's not really the fine dining as such, even though I know I would love the atmosphere, I'm just so curious about the cuisine - to experience it. And I'm the perfect person to do so because I don't think that there is much that I dislike in taste.
Translation: I LOVE FOOD.
Great update and thanks for the pictures of the house. Crossing my fingers for you.
There are some dishes I've loved more than others but I've never had anything I hated...there is plenty of food over the course of dinner so you won't starve. 
My mom is declining rapidly at this point but I recently found out, through the dwindling boundaries of dementia, that I was named after a soap opera character who was married ten times
