WDW...again!

We decided it would be a great idea to spend a part of Memorial Day weekend at one of our favorite places…Orlando and Walt Disney World! We left Columbus on Wednesday morning and flew down to Orlando. We got in (a little ahead of schedule!) and grabbed our rental car. I thought it would be a great idea to reserve the “lock low and go” car with Dollar. This rate guaranteed us a mid-size car or larger. Well, when we got to the rental counter, the guy told us we had the option of a Grand Marquis or a minivan. This is what Kevin chose…(don’t I look thrilled…)

We drove over to the hotel and our room wasn’t ready yet, so we went over to Downtown Disney and grabbed some lunch at Wolfgang Puck’s Café. It was great to have lunch and spend the afternoon walking around Downtown Disney! At about 3 PM we went back to the hotel and checked in. We had a wonderful view!

Our Room!

The view!

We could see Epcot from our room!

Tower of Terror

More views (it was a gorgeous day!)

After checking in, we put on our suits and went down to the pool bar and grabbed a couple beers, and hung out by the pool. We ended up in the pool for a little bit, and took a cat nap on the loungers. It was a great way to spend the afternoon! We ended the day by having a nice dinner at the sports bar in the hotel, then enjoying a rum and ginger ale outside on the back deck of the hotel. It was a wonderful and relaxing evening!

Dusk in Orlando

Relaxing night!

The next day we woke up early and headed to the Magic Kingdom. This was our first time staying off property, so we drove to the park and paid for tickets at the Transportation and Ticket center, then boarded the monorail with everyone else and went to the Magic Kingdom. It was pretty cool doing it that way.

Monorail Entrance

Magic Kingdom Entrance

We had a wonderful day! We went on all our favorite rides, and enjoyed great weather all day long.  Here are some fun pictures!

We were excited to ride Space Mountain!

The Castle!

Kev's favorite

Yay!

Mmmm...Mickey Ice Cream!

Me having fun!

View of the castle from TTA

We know how to have fun!

I was able to book reservations a few months ago for Chef Mickey’s and we headed over there for dinner. We had a great waiter and got to see all the characters (with the exception of Donald). We got some really cute pictures as well. (Side note: the food was actually really good!)

On our way back to the Magic Kingdom we went over to the Polynesian to check it out (and see if we would want to stay there on a future trip). I really thought it was cool…but I think Kevin was definitely more dazzled by our last stay at the Grand Floridian!

The Lobby

The awesome pool at the Polynesian!

We decided to head back to the Magic Kingdom to check out Spectromagic and Wishes. Although it started drizzling right before the fireworks, we still had a great time! It was a great end to the evening!!

Great night pic!

Best picture I have ever taken!!!

Spectromagic :)

The next day we got ready and headed over to Epcot. We both felt great even after the long but fun day the day before.  Must be magic. :)

I'm ready to roll!

Here's the view from our spot!

We were walking into the park, and were surprised to see that we arrived right in time for the rope drop. In all our trips to WDW, we have never seen it before. It was pretty cool. We then noticed everyone had the same idea we did…get a Fastpass for Soarin’! It was ok though…we still got a great time!

Another of Kev in front of the Epcot sign!

Rope drop!

Run!  Get that Fastpass!

We took the entire day at a somewhat leisurely pace. We rode all our favorites in Future World and headed over to the World Showcase around 12:30. We grabbed lunch at the quick service counter in Morocco, and walked around. We may have even grabbed a Grand Marnier slushie and a beer along the way. :)

Us in front of the fountain

Shot of Spaceship Earth

Show in the France Pavilion...I wouldn't do what this guy is doing!

Maelstrom :)

Kickin' back in the World Showcase

Mariachi band in the Mexico Pavilion

We went to dinner at Les Chefs de France, and had a wonderful waitress named Melanie. We got to see Lidio, our favorite waiter there too! It was a great meal! Afterwards, we walked outside and were trying to decide what to do with about an hour until Illuminations started. We stopped and talked to a cast member named Debbie.  She was so friendly and personable, that we just chatted with her for a while about Disney and other things. She was so nice, and said we better bring our kids back to see her someday! After saying bye to Debbie, we grabbed a soft serve cone and headed over to the other side of the World Showcase Lagoon. Again, it started drizzling a little bit before the fireworks started…but wasn’t too bad. We saw a great show, and headed out of the park after a long but fun day!

Where we staked out for the fireworks

Nighttime shot of the America Pavilion

The lit torch

The next day we spent at the resort. Kevin booked us a couples’ massage in the morning, which was wonderful after two long days on our feet. We then went over to the pool bar and got some lunch. It started pouring while we were eating. We were under cover, so it was no big deal to us!  After it cleared out, we enjoyed some time in the hot tub and the pool before it started clouding over again. Kevin got some great pictures from our balcony!

Pool bar

Florida afternoon rain

Yikes!  Ominous...

That night we headed over to Universal’s City Walk. We checked out some of the shopping, and had a great dinner at Margaritaville! It was an early night for us since we were both exhausted.

Hard Rock at CityWalk

Margaritaville :)

More shops :)

The next morning I woke up, and once I opened my eyes…uh oh. I had a sinus infection. Ugh. I usually get one every May and every September, and sure enough…I got one at the end of May. I managed to muddle through the plane flight home with the help of two packages of Kleenex! Unfortunately, one of my ears still hasn’t popped yet. After we got home and picked up the dogs, I headed over to Urgent Care to get some antibiotics, and am (slowly) on the mend. It was not the best ending to our trip, but it definitely didn’t put a damper on the fun we had! It was a wonderful 5 days!!

Sure, I was tired...but I wasn't near as tired as these two!  Thanks Auntie Gayle!

Scrapbook in progress (and one that has been finished!)

I’ve definitely been taking advantage of the wonderful scrapbook room Kevin made for me! I just thought that I would post a few pictures of what I have been working on recently.


I made my mom a scrapbook for Mother’s Day this year. This came as a plain chipboard kit (with the coordinating paper pack, and some embellishments. I added a few things of my own, and did not use the acrylic cover that came with it (not by choice).  Note to self: acrylic scratches VERY easily!  As you can see, it turned out fine anyway!  Mom absolutely loved it!

Here's the cover

Top of the book

Look at those outfits!

Pets :)

Dad and I

Wedding!

Perfect Ending :)

I also started working on a Disney scrapbook with the pictures of our trip from last September, To put it in perspective, between the pictures that Kevin took during that trip, AND all the Photopass pictures we got, we had almost 1400 pictures. I ended up ordering about 300 from Snapfish for the scrapbook. I am still going to have to cut that down by a good amount, or else I am going to have a 150 page scrapbook!  So far, I finished the cover page, and the first day. I’m at 11 pages total…only 7 more days to scrap! (Yikes!) See below for what I have done so far:

Here is the scrapbook I found on Ebay.  Isn't it adorable??

I had this paper custom made at ScrapYourTrip.com

On our way!

Arriving at the GF!

Magic Kingdom (pg 1)

Magic Kingdom (pg 2)

Story of Beauty and the Beast.  Kevin gave this to me when I got the flowers and basket. :)

At the top is a picture of one of the roses.  They were gorgeous!  I also made that Minnie & Mickey with my cricut.  I won't even go into how long that took!! :)

Fireworks on our first night!

(I have also been using a design book called “Imagine” by Jeanette Lynton. This has really helped me a lot, and has also given me some great ideas!)

Kevin got a sneak peek in honor of our Disney trip we're taking shortly.  He won't get to see the rest until it's finished, so I probably won't post any on here until it's complete.  Here's hoping I can work fast!

Our New Bedroom!

It's been a long time coming, but after almost three years of living in our house we FINALLY completed our bedroom.  We have gotten sidelined by other projects along the way (carpeting, new doors throughout, paint in every room, pergo in the kitchen and entry, etc, etc, etc....), but we finally have a bedroom that I LOVE!

Here's a little progression from when we first moved in until now...

These were taken a few weeks after we moved in, pretty bland...huh? (July 2007)

OK...get ready to be really scared.  Here are some pics right before Kevin painted the room...hence the painters tape and Spackle on the walls. (Don't mind the comforter that was completely flattened and destroyed by Mr. Bono...) (August 2009)

Ok, at least we have painted walls, new window coverings and bedding, and wainscoting up. Also, Bono is no longer allowed on the bed! :) (October 2009)

Yay, new furniture, TV, ceiling fan, and decor!  We're moving up in the world :) (May 2010)

We love our new bedroom so much that we came home on Friday night, and just ended up watching TV in our room.  We were asleep by 10:30. :)  That's ok though.  Of all the work we have done on the house, I think this was our most dramatic transformation.  We still want to do tile in the bathroom (and get rid of the last of the hideous linoleum), but it will all happen in good time. 

Although Kevin says that he enjoys projects, I think we have both decided that we want to build our next house, so we can have more say in everything.  But, all in all, we can't complain.  We're finally getting our house close to where we want it, and I'm ok with that!

***Side note, the cherry wood dresser, chest, and nightstand are still for sale!***  ;-)

RIP Renee Walker (and 24)

The show '24' is one of my absolute favorites of all time.  Kevin and I got hooked on it during season 3, (it's now on season 8), and are disappointed this will be the final season.  (After last night there are only 6 episodes left).  :(  The first half of this season moved a little slow, but has gotten REALLY good the past couple weeks.  I think they are pulling out all the stops for the final episodes.  There is also rumor of a feature film being made, which I can't wait for!  We will most definitely be seeing that in the theatre.

Kevin always gets mad when one of our favorite characters dies, and ends up throwing remotes across the room.  So, in honor of Renee Walker, who died in last night's episode...this is for you, Kevin!

Scrapbooking

I LOVE to scrapbook. I think I'm 'OK' (at best) at it, but would really love to get better. Scrapbooking, I realize, is something you get better at the more you do it. I truly am a left-brained person at heart, so I am much more analytical than 'artsy'!

I made my first scrapbook right after college. It still isn't finished, but what I have is HUGE (I have pictures from my entire Junior year, and half of my Senior year in it). I pulled it out a couple weeks ago, and was laughing at it. Not only have I gotten much better since then...I really think scrapbooking materials have improved greatly since 2001!

When Kevin and I were getting married, we wanted to get a gift for our parents that was special. We decided to each do a scrapbook for them. We took the same pictures and got the same materials for each page, but made them uniquely our own. It was a big hit! Both sets of parents really liked them. My parents still have theirs sitting in their living room (almost 5 years later).

I started a wedding scrapbook, but it has sadly been MIA since we moved into our house almost three years ago. I most likely am going to make another one at some point! I also did a recipe scrapbook for my friend Gail's bridal shower last year. I emailed everyone that was invited to Gail's shower and had them send me their favorite recipes and pictures if they had them. This was actually probably my favorite scrapbook that I've done. It was so much fun working with all the different materials, pictures, and recipes. Not to toot my own horn, but it turned out really cute!

Last year while working on the recipe scrapbook, I also did one of Kevin and my trip to Disney World in 2008. It was actually nice working on two projects at the same time. It kept me from getting bored working on the same thing. I also started a scrapbook from our Myrtle Beach trip (in 2007) last summer. Then we got busy. We went to Disney World in September, St. Pete in October, and before we knew it we were in the midst of the holiday season!

My parents got me a Cricut for Christmas and it renewed my need to finish the Myrtle Beach scrapbook and start on some new projects. Unfortunately, the fact still remained that I really didn't have a good place to scrapbook. I have a nice roll-y scrapbook bag, but after a while it gets really annoying packing it to the brim, rolling the bag around, unloading it, re-loading it, etc. Over the summer, I was taking my bag with me when I went in with Kevin to do his radio show, but I can’t take my cricut with me when he is on the air, so I was back to pulling everything out at home, bringing it downstairs, then putting it away when I was done and taking it all back up. Kevin had been thinking about it for a while, and a little over a month ago he decided to make our fourth bedroom into a scrapbook room. He closed the room off for a week and worked on cleaning it up, painting, and putting together a great room for me. The only input I had was the paint color and the desk :). He did an amazing job! Here are some pictures of the room:

The Room!

Even Mullen loves it!

Now, I have the space I've always wanted! I usually spend a couple hours a week in here. I just plug my iPod in and get a chance to clear my head.

Last weekend, my parents came down because my mom was going to the scrapbook expo with me. We had a blast (and bought too much!!). They have it at one of the buildings at the Ohio State Fairgrounds. A bunch of companies have booths there full of all different types of scrapbook stuff. It was so nice to walk around to all the different booths and get new ideas. There was a booth we went to that had a product that allowed you to make your own paper from junk mail. How great is that?!? It was actually very cool. There were also a lot of new things I learned, like how to work with chipboard and glitter. My head has been spinning since then with all kinds of new ideas.

My favorite booth by far was Creek Bank Creations. They have a lot of their own products, and so many great ideas. My mom and I visited that booth twice, and although I didn't buy anything there at the show, I will be making many purchases from them soon! One of their ‘Take Home a Class’ albums will be my next project. (In addition to the Disney scrapbook I am going to start working on from our anniversary trip last year.)

Also, another one of my favorite websites for scrapbook stuff is Scrap Your Trip.com! They have a huge variety of products including personalized papers. I've used them for my Disney and Myrtle Beach scrapbooks!

I will try to post some layouts and new projects I'm working on so I can have documentation of my 'scrapbooking progression!' :)

Travelin' Duo...

Kevin and I are very excited, we're actually taking TWO vacations this year!  (Well, actually one real vacation, and one mini-vacation)! 

In May, we're headed back to Orlando!  We went to the AAA Great Vacations Expo last month, with the only intention of meeting Adam Richman from 'Man vs. Food'!  We saw his presentation and the hot dog eating contest (yuck!).  After his presentation, we headed over to meet him....then...HELLO LINE!  We would have been waiting forever.  We said hi to him, and then proceeded to check out the rest of the show.  It was a great time actually.  We ran into the lady who works at the Marriott World Center in Orlando, and they had an amazing rate for Memorial Day weekend.  After about four days of thinking about it, we decided to book it!  We can't wait!

We're headed down in about two months.  We were talking about not doing WDW at all, but decided we could not be that close and not go!  Our plan is to hang out at the resort on the first day, go to the Magic Kingdom on the second day, Epcot the third, and then play it by ear on the fourth day.  We are very excited!

We also have decided to do something completely different to celebrate our 5th anniversary in September.  We're crossing our fingers for no hurricanes, and are headed to a Sandals all-inclusive resort in Jamaica!  We can't wait!  The last time I was to a Caribbean island, I was 18 and on a cruise with my parents.  Kevin went to the Bahamas when he was 21.  We've never done anything like this, and are really excited!  Six months and we'll be saying "No problem, mon!" :)