Easter Egg Scramble

Obviously, being a “single” mom when you have a husband is quite difficult. And moving halfway across the country without him was something I don’t ever want to do again! But after a few weeks of getting settled into our new home, and trying to get into our new routine, we got a temporary break from our separation. Between his training schools, we get Josh for 2.5 weeks! He got here late on Mar 28 and is staying until this coming Sunday morning.

We’ve been keeping busy while he’s here. Our first big event was going to an Easter Egg Hunt on his first Sunday here. The City of Moline was putting on an Egg Hunt for different age groups so we decided to go for the 2-yrs & under scramble. After a week of gorgeous weather, it had cooled off a bit, but we threw on our jackets and went looking for some eggs!

When we were all lined up, waiting for the whistle to blow, Dylan was really excited about the eggs! And he was awfully mad at his Mommy & Daddy for not letting him run out and grab them all before the other kids! By the time the whistle blew and there were people running all over the place, he was more interested in why everyone was rushing around. So there was more aimless running around than picking up eggs. Josh did manage to get Dylan to grab a few eggs. Josh did not, however, resort to what I saw some parents doing...shoveling as many eggs as they could into their kids baskets while the kids watched. Really? You need the one peppermint per egg so bad that you'll snatch eggs away from 1 year olds? Wow! But Dylan had fun...so that's all that matters. (Notice the cracker in his hand while egg hunting? I swear, we moms will do anything to keep our kids occupied!)

After carefully placing 9 eggs in his basket, Dylan was ready to meet the Easter Bunny. He spotted him from across the field and really wanted to go check him out. Lucky for us, Dylan wasn’t afraid of the bunny at all! He gave him high fives and posed for his photo.

I, on the other hand, was a little concerned that it was probably the worse Easter Bunny costume in the history of costumes! I’m glad Josh has a smile on his face and not the expression that I’m sure I was wearing while taking the photo.

After our photo with the scary Easter Bunny, we went over to check out the fire trucks. They were letting kids climb in them and sit in the front seat.

Overall, it was a pretty simple morning and we were back in our car in less than 45 minutes. But we had a good time and made some memories. That was the plan for the next two weeks…fill it full of memories.

A Whirlwind of Moving

Even though I don’t have the time to write a post right now, I am allowing myself the escape in order to clear my mind and try to relax for a minute. Things have been absolutely crazy around here for the past couple weeks. Not only am I missing my husband (and Dylan is very obviously missing his Daddy), trying to prepare for the move, and trying to complete a few large projects with work before they turn my internet off…Dylan was sick for about a week!

I think the root of his sickness was the fact that he was trying to push 6 teeth out! You read that right, my poor little guy was struggling with sore gums because SIX of his teeth were trying to cut through at the same time. This lead to not eating, a runny nose, and an off-and-on fever for days. I also think his immune system was down and there was a bit of a cold too. He now has a really nice cough too! But those teeth finally pushed through and he is finally eating again!

Since my little man wanted more Mama time than usual, I wasn’t getting as much done as I needed to. So, now I’m running around like a mad woman trying to get our life in a somewhat organized fashion before the movers walk through my front door. Movers ETA = 4.5 days.

Perfect Valentine's Day shirt!

The good news is that I survived two weeks without Josh that were jam-packed with holidays. Super Bowl (yes, I think it is a holiday), Josh’s Birthday, our 5-yr Anniversary, and Valentine’s Day. Yes, there is the argument that I wasn’t alone and I had my own little 19-month old Valentine. And, it‘s true, he was my little sweetheart all day. I thank God that I have him. But, I still wish my husband could have been around for the Day of Love.

While talking to Josh on the phone yesterday, we realized that we’ve had more Valentine’s Days separated than we have together. We decided it’s the other 364 days that count. But, again, I am a hopeless romantic and did find myself wishing for the dream instead of yesterday’s reality. A girl can dream right?

Can I blame Disney and fairy tales for my hopeless romanticism? Maybe it’s dangerous that I work for a company completely devoted to Disney World. Disney gives me all those thoughts of happiness, and dreams coming true, and memories of our lives in Orlando. On the other hand, maybe having Disney on the brain every day while working for the next year will help while Josh is away.

The Disney Company stated this today (which made me smile), “On this day in 1950, Walt Disney Picture released ‘Cinderella,’ reminding little girls everywhere that the right shoe can make all the difference…”

Okay, I have to get back to my whirlwind of a week. Where is my Fairy Godmother when I need her? I’d wish for all of my lists to be completed with the snap of a finger! Or wait, do I need Mary Poppins instead?

To keep with my Cinderella theme I have managed to conjure up today, this is my Smile of the Day. As with the last one, I saw this on Pinterest and feel it needs to be shared. It‘s just great!

Christmas at Marlene & Larry's House

When we left the Quad Cities, we were headed East to Josh’s sister’s house for the Christmas weekend. We had such a wonderful time with Larry, Marlene and family. Dylan was completely loved on the entire time we were there.

Setting the table for our Christmas meal

On Christmas Eve, we went to church for the Christmas service and then headed back to the house for a wonderful Christmas meal. Marlene and Larry cooked up an incredible feast.

And we had to have Christmas toasts! There was a Sparkling Cider toast and a Corona Christmas toast. Good stuff!

On Christmas Morning, the younger kids were SO excited to open their presents, so we had an early wake-up call.

However, Marlene and Larry did tell them that they had to wait until at least 6. So, I was woken up at about 6:09 and present unwrapping commenced at about 6:15. I left Dylan in bed, but he heard all the excitement and woke up anyway. He was a little too tired to get into it like the other kids but he tried. As you can imagine, there was an late morning nap in store for him.

Cute Side Story: When we opened an 8x10 photo of the family (taken last summer at Grandpa West’s funeral) sent from Joe & Cindy, Dylan was very interested. He inspected it closely, and found his Grandma Cindy (you can see him pointing at her in this photo). He still likes looking at that photo. I keep it on a shelf low enough for him to reach. He carries it around the house checking everyone out.

We tried taking a family photo, but it was a little early for all of us and Dylan wasn’t really in the mood. Oh well, it works.

Strangely enough, I think Dylan’s favorite Christmas gift was actually Larry’s. He got a massage chair. Dylan saw all of us trying it out and decided that he wanted a go at it. We put it on the lower back setting so it was perfect for him. He sat so still and was so serious the entire time he was getting massaged. I thought it might freak him out, but he loved it. How crazy is that?

We left on Christmas afternoon to start our drive home. I know Dylan enjoyed his time at Aunt Marlene & Uncle Larry’s house just as much as we did. It was so special to be able to spend the holiday with them. We are very blessed to have such incredible people in our family.

Dylan and his cousins 

An Early QC Christmas

Our early Christmas Day had arrived! Continuing on our early celebration plans, we got up on Sunday morning and got the stockings out. Dylan’s stocking didn’t have much in it because all of his gifts were way to big to fit in a tiny stocking. So he got to open a few of his big presents while we dug into our stockings.

Although Dylan has become a professional paper ripper, he took the time that morning to make one gift extra beautiful. It's obvious that if a present looks nice with one bow, it stands to reason that it would look even better with several! What an artist!

That morning Dylan got to open one of his gifts from Josh. It was a sit-and-spin! He needed a little help figuring it out, but once he did, he was on fire!

We wanted to take a family photo in our Christmas pajamas. That’s right, we get pj’s every Christmas Eve and wear them on Christmas morning. Of course, this year, we had two Christmas mornings when we could wear them. Dylan’s had monkeys in Santa suits on snow skis…awesome.

After a little roughhousing with Oscar, we were ready to get dressed and prepare for our family Christmas afternoon. I went to pick up my Grandma and Grandpa and Grandma Gisele came over too. We had a wonderful meal (Cheesy potatoes!!!) and then settled in for some presents.

Dylan made out like a bandit and I’m not sure any of us were good enough this past year to deserve all that we got.

Although Josh said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’ve been awesome this year!” hehehe.

Oscar even got spoiled!
I may have spoiled him on purpose because we were leaving him at Mom & Bob’s house for these two months before Dylan & I move to Moline. It was going to be easier to take him and leave him then, rather than when we are moving all of our stuff in February. Dylan was showing Oscar how to snuggle up on his new kitty bed. As you can see from the photo, Oscar was not as excited about it as Dylan.

Santa came early and brought Dylan a huge new toy box to put in his new room in Moline. It only took about 30 minutes before he decided he wanted to climb on top of the toy box and slide down the front. He is such a boy!

After the Grandparents were home, we turned on the Patriots game and snacked on leftovers all evening (cheesy potatoes!!!). It was a great day. Exactly how I would want an (early) Christmas Day to be. Thank you so much to my family for celebrating with us. It was perfect.

A Busy Early Christmas Eve

We spent the weekend before Christmas at my parents’ house. Since we were leaving a few days before Christmas, I convinced myself that Saturday, Dec 17 was Christmas Eve and Sunday, Dec 18 was Christmas Day. Santa came early, we did stockings on Christmas Morning, a family meal and presents - the whole she-bang. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Back to our Early Christmas Eve…

Dylan and I had been in Moline for almost two weeks without Josh. He was at a two week training school in California. Once he was done, he flew into Moline on the red-eye from San Francisco. I went to pick him up at 9:30 am on Saturday morning while Dylan had breakfast with Grandma Linda & Grandpa Bob.

Josh and I got back to the house right about the time that Dylan was getting a little cranky and ready for his nap. Not quite the welcome that I was hoping he’d give Daddy, but what can you do? While Dylan took his nap, Bob & I took Josh over to see the house that Dylan and I will be moving into in a couple months. Yes, it has been decided. Dylan, Oscar and I are going to be living in Grandma Gisele’s house. She moved out of the house and into an apartment a while back. The house didn’t sell and the contract was up with the real estate agent. So, instead of resigning with her and putting it back on the market, she offered it to me. It’s a win-win for all.

On the way back from the house, we picked up Hungry Hobo (always on the list of must-eat places when I’m in town) and brought it home for lunch. Dylan had just woken up before we got here and was a brand new boy. He was incredibly happy to see Josh. As a matter of fact, he was having a hard time looking away from him. Josh had to eat his entire lunch kneeling down next to Dylan’s highchair. They shared a turkey sandwich, lots of laughs, and lots of hugs and kisses.

After lunch, it was time for Josh to take a nap (he was REALLY tired after taking the red-eye) and it was time for Dylan and I to go pick up my step-mom (Nana Connie) at the airport. It seemed like everyone was coming into town that day! Dylan was a little shy at the airport, but warmed up to Nana by the time we got to Aunt Karen’s house. Then Dylan was getting spoiled with love by Nana and Great-Aunt Karen. He read books, showed off his dancing skills, went up and down the stairs a few times, and even got to pet the dog! What a lucky boy! My Grandpa Charlie and his wife also stopped over to say hello.

By the time we headed back to Mom & Bob’s house, Dylan was passed out in the back seat. Fun overload! While he took a quick nap, I woke Josh up from his nap because we had company coming. Mike & Liz came over for an evening of carry-out Chinese food, early presents, dance parties, and (once again) too much fun!

Dylan got to open an early Christmas present from Grandpa Bob & Grandma Linda. It was a Honda 4-Wheeler! When he saw it, his eyes got huge, he started clapping, and tried to climb on before we could get it out of the box.

He drove that thing around the house for about an hour. Then, he started getting ridiculous and wanted to stand up on the seat. I have such a BOY! He's a dare-devil. I am in so much trouble for the future.

Dylan was so happy to see his Daddy. He hardly let him out of his sight all night long. They played and snuggled all night.

It was a great early Christmas Eve. We saw SO much family and had WAY too much fun. We all slept well that night! And when we woke up…Christmas Morning!

Getting in the Christmas Spirit at Grandma House

I had told Josh that I was really depressed about not putting up any holiday decorations in our home this year. We were all leaving the house the first weekend of December and not returning until the day after Christmas. So, it makes perfect sense to not put anything up, but it was still making me sad to see lights and trees and decorations everywhere…except my own house.

Putting the giraffe in the tree

I also knew that my mom would make up for what my house was lacking. And she sure does deliver. The tree was up and ready to be decorated when we got here. She even divided her ornaments into breakable (for the top half of the tree) and Dylan-proof (for the bottom half). Dylan even made sure his small stuffed giraffes were a part of the tree decorations.

Helping Mommy decorate the tree

Dylan was excited to help decorate the tree. Now, every time he walks by the tree, he shows me every single ornament on the bottom half of the tree. I imagine that he’s saying, “I helped with this one…and this one…and this one…”

On the first weekend we were here, we went to Wallace’s to see the Christmas displays. He liked the Polar Bear area. He wanted to touch every single one.

Question, why is the tall bear peaking through the trees, the only one that's smiling? What does he know that the rest don't?

He was getting a little crabby while we were there because it was a little too close to his naptime. But we managed to sneak in a few cute photos before the meltdown.

We saw the Polar Bears, a huge Toy Soldier, Santa’s sleigh and reindeer, and even Santa’s big chair!










A few nights later, we were spending time at my parents’ house when Dylan discovered the bin of Grandma Gisele slippers. After taking every single pair out, he discovered a pile of loose jingle bells in the bottom!

Grandma & Dylan playing music shakers

So my mom threw together a fun music shaker for him. She dropped a few jingle bells inside old prescription bottles and put snowflake stickers on them. He was entertained for at least an hour!

The ultimate sugar rush experience happened last week when my mom suggested we decorate cookies. And, of course, Dylan should help! She showed him how to spread the icing on the cookies and then put sprinkles on top

They even shared a bite after the cookie was looking so tasty.

Then Dylan got to try doing it all on his own!

“Enough of this decorating business. Let’s get eatin’!”

Even though he ended up being a total frosting disaster, we all had so much fun!

Disney Christmas Memories

While working the other day, I was updating some Christmas at Disney details and started getting into the Holiday spirit. I started reminiscing about my favorite things about Disney at Christmas time and about some of my favorite memories from when we lived in Orlando. I thought I’d share some of my memories and photos. I figure that it might bring back some Disney Holiday memories from some of you. I'm only posting a small selection of my photos and memories - If I didn't put a limit on it, I could be doing this all day long!

Animal Kingdom 

Our first Christmas at Disney was in 2004 during our College Program. On one of our days off work, Josh and I headed to the Animal Kingdom. On our way out of the park, Mickey, Minnie and Goofy were all there in their holiday/winter gear. This photo of us with Santa Goofy is one of my favorites.

Hollywood Studios

Photo by my dad, Steve

That same year (2004), my Dad & step-mom came down to visit in early December. We went to the Studios one night and wandered around the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights. My Dad took this photo of one of the sections of lights. It’s so hard to get nighttime photos of lights, but I think he did a great job on this one. You actually get an idea of how many lights there really are there.

One of my favorite Christmas things at the Studios isn’t there anymore. I’m just a sentimental girls, but I liked the Hollywood Holly-Day Parade. They don’t do it anymore because it was just the Christmas version of the Stars and Motorcars parade (which is no longer there either). There was just something a bout it that I liked. Maybe it was the variety of characters…maybe it was just all the classic Christmas songs. Either way, it was very Christmas-y.

Epcot

I absolutely love walking around the World Showcase at Christmas. Every country has it’s own flair with decorations. I really like Italy. It is so beautiful and classy (especially at night!)

The Candlelight Processional is one of those things that I’m glad I did at least once. The first time I saw it, the Narrator was Marlee Matlin. I enjoyed the whole thing, but it wasn’t until the very end when it started to snow that I started getting teary-eyed. Even though it was fake snow, it was the perfect ending. Especially for a Mid-West girl who wasn't going to see snow that Christmas.

Grand Floridian

In 2005, I started working at the Grand Floridian. And if it’s not famous for it’s bright red rooftops, or fancy restaurants, or expensive rooms, or weddings with Cinderella’s coach…you can bet that people think it’s famous for it’s ridiculously huge lobby tree and annual Gingerbread house.

They put up the tree in the middle of the night in one night, so it magically appears when people wake up one morning. It is the most overwhelming tree you will ever see in your life. And the (what seems like almost lifesize) Gingerbread house is always awesome. There’s even a little sales counter in it where you can buy goodies. Doesn’t Disney think of everything? To top it all off, there is a live band that plays Christmas Songs in the evening from the second floor balcony. If you can't get in the Christmas mood here, it's not likely to happen at all!

Disney Resorts

AK Lodge tree decoration (Photo by Erin)

Throughout more than one Christmas season, I decided to make the rounds to the Disney Resort Hotels to check out their decorations, trees, and gingerbread. As a matter of fact, in 2009, my Mom, my friend Erin, and I did a Disney Girls trip and made a point to visit all the resorts. Between all my holiday seasons at Disney and the hundreds of photos my mom, Erin and I took on that one trip, I would have enough photos of the resorts to overload this website. So I’m only posting a few. But there are so many amazing things to see everywhere. If you are a sightseer/explorer, you would love a resort holiday adventure.

In addition to themed Christmas tress, all of the resorts have their own Gingerbread display. Aside from the huge house at the Grand Floridian, another extravagant one is the gingerbread carousel at the Yacht Club. There’s even a scavenger hunt list and hidden Mickeys!

Magic Kingdom

Saving the very best for last…the Magic Kingdom. I mean, “Magic” is in the name. How could it not be amazing? The whole park always looks amazing and puts you in an incredibly festive mood. But my favorite part? That’s easy. I am a total sucker for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Parade. It...is...Awesome!

If you are ever there over the first weekend of December expect to see the taping of the annual Christmas Day Parade (aired on ABC on Christmas morning). It’s usually chaos, but it’s kind of cool to see parts of the parade come together. When I was there with Mom & Erin, we were passing Main Street right as Santa’s portion of the parade was about to be taped. I was about 6 weeks pregnant at the time and a bit emotional. But seeing Santa with the Castle behind him was pretty awesome. It didn't hurt that Santa waved right at me (Yes, I do have a photo of that too, but I thought the one with the castle in the back was better to share).

Photo by Erin

Oh, and I can't forget to mention the castle all lit up with Christmas lights at the end of the night. It couldn’t be a more perfect and beautiful way to finish up your festive day at the Magic Kingdom.

I’m so happy that I got to spend as many holidays as I did with the Mouse. I know there are many people out there who dream about a Christmas Disney trip. I’m pretty sure I used to be one of them. It truly is magical. Even though I worked there for a couple years and my job now is still all-Disney-all-the-time, I have never lost that magical feeling that Disney gives you. I really hope I never do.

What about you? Do you have any magical Christmas memories from Walt Disney World? I can't be the only one! :)