I'm Back with So Much To Tell

The Castle lit for Halloween

Yes, I have returned from what was probably the best vacation I've ever had.  I have so much to tell and so many photos to share that I'm not quite sure where to start.  So maybe I'll do just a quick wrap-up today and go into more detail in future posts.

Simba float from The Lion King Show

Shows -- We saw shows that we hadn't seen before, one of which was the Beauty and the Beast show.  And it was phenomenal.  Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorite Disney movies, and the show couldn't have been better.  Because of my scooter and Bubby's wheelchair, we were seated in the first row.  Also we did Hoop-Dee-Doo review and it was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.

Lettuce being grown in "Pods".

Rides -- I'm not a big rider, let me say that.  But we rode the riverboat and the train, two of my favorite methods of transportation.  We did The Great Movie Ride in Hollywood Studios, and it highlighted some of what I consider to be the best movies and actors ever -- John Wayne, Gone with the Wind, and oh, yes, The Three Stooges.  But one of my favorite rides is the Living with the Land ride.  Here you board a boat that takes you through a display of how the land has been used by humans, and ends with a tour of the Disney greenhouse where they are experimenting with new methods of growing vegetables. Some of these lettuces will find their way into salads at the "Garden Grill" restaurant.

the Mad Hatter and Mary Poppins

Characters -- there were a lot of characters out and about, and I managed to get 8 blocks signed by characters I hadn't been able to get before.  I was able to add the White Rabbit and the Queen of Hearts to my Alice in Wonderland blocks; Princess Tiana and her beau Naveen  and also Princess Jasmine and Aladdin to the Princess collection; and Handy Manny and Lotsa Hugs Bear to the kids collection.  These are two of my favorite characters - Krissy dressed as Mary Poppins, and Bubby dressed as the Mad Hatter.

my pirate pins

Pins -- I am a Disney Pin Collector.  Not one of the serious collectors who strives to find the most valuable, but a collector who builds collections of her favorite things. On the last trip I concentrated on Pirate pins, and pins for the four parks; pins from movies and various shaped pins.  This trip, I concentrated on pins from Winnie the Pooh; pins from my favorite movies; and pins from the special rides and events we attended.  And I couldn't resist buying a pin that was Mickey dressed as a nutcracker (I do have a nutcracker collection)

Magic -- Somehow Disney always manages to provide "Magic".  We got chocolate covered strawberries for our anniversary at the Disney's Playhouse breakfast -- completely unexpected that a meal designed for kids would make two old people feel special.  We got a towel bird from our Mousekeeper and she folded our bathmat with a washcloth to make a bow on our bathtub.  And we got an anniversary card with a photopass discount from our hotel.  Mary's kids got cupcakes at two meals to celebrate their birthdays.  Mary was given preferred viewing for the Illuminations show from Guest Services to make up for the lousy weather preventing us from seeing that show last year.

Beautiful views --  The area surrounding Disney is spectacular.  Rod snapped this sunset photo while we were on a boat (see I told you I love boats) returning from the Hoop-Dee-Doo review at Fort Wilderness. It was truly a perfect ending to a perfect day.

Thinking Out Loud

Tomorrow morning at this time, I will be at the airport waiting to board my flight to Orlando.  I should be bubbling over with excitement.  But this morning I have other things on my mind.  Please bear with me as I think out loud.

Yesterday was my Dr.'s appointment for my quarterly checkup.  First the positive:  I lost three pounds, and my cholesterol was good.  Now the bad news:  my fasting blood sugar levels were high; my A1C was high; my triglycerides were a little high; and my thyroid levels were somewhat elevated.  Don't know much about the thyroid; but from what I read online last night, high levels are not a good thing.  I will be retested after returning from Disney.

But I'm most concerned about my blood sugar levels.  I've been feeling pretty lousy lately, and I guess my high levels explain why.  So, after returning from vacation, I need to make some serious lifestyle changes.  I had practically stopped drinking milk (16 gr. of sugar per cup) and I miss it.  Dr. O stressed that I need milk, he would prefer I use skim milk, but will compromise  on 1%.  But he voiced a definite NO to grapefruit since it could interfere with my medications.  I've been avoiding carbs as much as possible, and he tells me that is also a no-no -- I need carbs, and just need to choose "good" carbs.

And so, after vacation, I need to return to the GI diet.  I've never cooked (and rarely eaten) kale, Swiss chard, broccolini, or spinach.  These leafy green veggies are high in iron, vitamins, and minerals.  If you have any favorite recipes using these items, please share.  And if you know of any blogs on the glycemic index way of eating, please let me know.  See you when I get back from vacation.

You're Invited to be an MFL Blog Author :-)

This afternoon when I opened my email, this was the title of a very exciting email.  I had done three guest blogs for The Mouse for Less, and today I was invited to be a regular contributor.  You can find one of my guest blogs on their blog site.  Daughter Mary has also been invited to be a contributor as she had also contributed guest blogs.  So, if you're interested you can find our blogs, and those of others on the site  http://www.themagicforless.com.  I'm so excited about this opportunity since I have always enjoyed writing.  And as a special incentive, the people at The Magic for Less have provided us with some really nice gift possibilities.  For our trip next week, there will be a special flower arrangement from them to thank me for my first three blogs.  Hope you'll give their blog site a read.  My first post is now up and running.

6 days to Go

OK, let me hear a big WAHOO!!!  I have finished machine sewing the binding on Izzy's quilt.  Today I will hand sew the binding down while watching children's television.  I love to hand sew because it is so relaxing for me.  If I'm doing charity quilts or quilts for nieces or nephews, I will machine sew the binding.   But for my immediate family, I hand sew the binding.  Makes me feel like there's a little extra love put in.

So, what to do next?   I took stock of my Halloween fabrics this morning, and have decided that as a surprise for my family, I will make Trick-Or-Treat bags for all of us to use at Disney.  I've found a couple of free patterns on the "Net", and today will decide which one to use and print it out.  Hoping to "assembly line" them over the weekend.

Yesteday, after much frustration and cussing at my printer, (we have a hate/hate relationship), and with help from daughter Mary, we managed to get the envelopes printed for our Mousekeeping tips.  I designed my own envelopes for all of us to use.  I made a list of what we need to buy this weekend.  So, I'm feeling like I am finally accomplishing something.  Hopefully pictures of the quilt and the bags posting on Monday.  Have a great weekend.

7 Days to Go

I guess it's not really dreaming any more - it's a reality.  One week from now, I should be on an airplane nearing the Orlando airport.  It's that close, and I'm starting to panic.  I just feel that somehow I was more prepared for the last trip.  I seem to have nothing done, and think I will make a list today of what needs to be done -- just so I'll feel better.  And zowie!!  Daughter Pat has been saying all along that she wasn't going on this trip.  But just this very minute, she called to say that she had changed her mind, and now daughter Mary is scrambling to make all her arrangements.  I'm so excited. I really wanted Pat to go too, and now she is.

I think I've said more than once that fall is my favorite season.  Fall foliage, football, cool breezes, and homemade soup -- what could be better!!  And I'm so excited about seeing the fall decorations at Walt Disney World.  They look so beautiful in the photos in the link, but I'll bet they are even more stunning in person.  It's been years since I went trick-or-treating.  And one of the activities that we have planned is to attend Mickey's Not So Scarey Halloween Party.  One of the most popular events here is that even the grown-ups get to go trick -or-treating.  How cool will that be!!!  A lot of the characters that you don't see during the rest of the year make an appearance during the Halloween party.  So, I need to take the quilt blocks that I didn't get signed the last trip.

And now, I need to stop. . . take a deep breath. . .  and get my rear into gear.

Monday/Tuesday

Since yesterday was a holiday, today is Monday/Tuesday.  Daughter Mary thinks that Monday/Tuesdays are worse than just plain Mondays.  I think she might be right, except that now there's only 3 work days left this week.  (Since it's late afternoon when I'm writing this)

Rod took a personal day on Friday, and we took the Izzy-Boo to Costco.  Whoa, there was a boatload of money dropped there.  But somethings are cheaper there.  So, I believe it's justified.  The kids were all here for a Friday night pizza night, and Mary, Pam, and I did the transfers onto the Tee shirts for Disney (which is in 9 days).  My job is really hard -- I have to cut out around some of the transfers.  Pluto's tail was a bugger, but I cut very slowly, and Pluto and his tail are still in tact.

Saturday I went for blood work, and then for groceries -- more money.  And then home for one of my favorite things in the whole wide world -- college football.  None of my fav teams were playing, so it was a good excuse to check the eyelids for holes.  It was chili and windy, and I wished most of the day that I had made soup.

Sunday was the best day.  The twins had never seen Phantom of the Opera.  Rod and I saw it in Toronto, but you didn't have to twist our arms to go into Pittsburgh to see it again.  This is supposed to be it's final tour, and Pam made all the arrangements for tickets.  We had really good seats, but the chairs were very uncomfortable.  You know that I'm a little Pooh shaped.  Do you remember as kids when you had those squeezie things (not the right name, I'm sure) that you squeezed to make their eyes bug out???  Well, I wish that someone, somewhere, could squeeze little ole me and make my legs pop out a little more.  To keep from sliding out of the seat, I had to sit with my little feet on their tippy toes.  Didn't seem like a big deal at the time, but oh were my legs and knees sore yesterday.  On the way home from Pittsburgh, we stopped at a steak house to have dinner with the twins.  It was a really fun day, and I'm so glad that we did it.

Yesterday, I got Izzy's quilt and a wall hanging pinned for quilting, and just tried to recuperate from Sunday.  Today I'm feeling pretty good.  Did some quilting this morning and played games this afternoon.  Now I'm watching TV with Izzy.  Hope your weekend was a good one.

Grandmother's Garden

I decided to do my own take on Grandmother's Garden -- using fruit and veggie fabrics.  I had posted some photos of blocks before, but just couldn't wait any longer.  I started putting some of my blocks together.  I'm not quite sure if I've done it the right way -- it's pretty much hit and miss.  If the quilt police show up, I'm sure they'll have some criticism, but I'm OK with how it's turning out.  I probably should have put the black hexies on every block, but I've just been putting them wherever I need them.  Hey, it's a learning process.

Another busy weekend on tap.  Ball games on Saturday, and Phantom of the Opera on Sunday.  We're going to a matinee with the twins.  Rod and I saw it in Toronto about 15 years ago, but Pam and Pat have never seen it.  It's making it's farewell tour, and so we will be seeing it at the Benedum Center in Pittsburgh.  It will be our second trip to the Benedum -- our first was to see the Lion King on Broadway with Mary and her family a few years ago.  Not real cultured are we?

I really have to get Izzy's quilt put together and quilted by the end of this weekend.