Travel
The joys
Posted by: | CommentsWe are home. And we are tired.
We pulled into the driveway tonight at about 8:15. We unloaded the car, I cleaned out the car entirely, cleaned out the fridge (I’m still not sure why), watered my indoor and outdoor plants, unpacked myself and the kids and started on the laundry. We put the kids to bed quite late tonight because we left the air off (purposely) while we were away. The upstairs was 89 degrees and the downstairs was 83.
It.was.hot.
So, now I sit, on my couch, my eyelids begging me to close them, but I won’t allow it because it’s still 82 degrees upstairs and I do not sleep anywhere that says anything about 82 degrees.
This past week has been so much fun. It was the perfect getaway. I can’t get over how sweet my sister, Sarah and her family are for letting us stay at her house from Tuesday to Saturday. Then yesterday we drove from Louisville to Michigan to visit my other sister, Amy, and her family. Today we went on a boat and went fishing. The kids had never been boating or fishing before. It was awesome.
This vacation was filled with many firsts…I’ll fill you in later, though.
The car that Ford asked to me to test drive? AMAZING. I can’t wait to tell you all about it. I don’t want to give it back, think they would notice if we gave them our van without air conditioning instead of the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid they brought to us? Maybe. Maybe not.
Of course we ate too much. I had a grand total of 7 waffle/ice cream cones and at least three s’mores and a lot of donuts. Which equals 235 pounds gained.
Oh and Brian spent a night in the hospital.
It was quite a week, I’m telling you.
I’m looking forward to tomorrow, to catching up on laundry (thankfully I did most of it at Sarah’s before we left), grocery shopping and getting the house back in order. Racecar has surgery on Tuesday to have his adenoids removed and tubes put in his ears, so we’ll be taking it easy tomorrow.
I just wanted to check in and say “hi” and thank you for checking in on my blog. Your readership means so much to me. And thanks to Erin and Maria for helping me fill my pages with their wonderful words and meaningful thoughts.
There are blessings all around us.
I think my eyelids are winning the battle. I guess I can sleep in a room that is 82 degrees.
Disney World
Posted by: | CommentsI often think people are just waiting for me to talk about it, about James and Jake, (not Disney World.) Not that there is anything wrong with that, it’s just that sometimes it feels good to not talk about it. To live life the way it’s supposed to be lived, without grief, without heartache. (that is the way it’s supposed to be, right?)
I can’t imagine trying to be my friend. Always wanting to do or say the right thing, never wanting to disregard, but not wanting to bring anything up for fear of upsetting me. And then I write something like I wrote in that first paragraph, which only proves that I am impossible to be around.
But I promise I’m not. At least I try not to be.
While I was in Disney World, I sat across from Emily, whom I had never met before, and she brought up a post I had written about James and Jake. Her forwardness took me by surprise because people just don’t really do that. But it was AWESOME. She had something to say to me about James and Jake and she said it. It was powerful and it ignited an amazing conversation with her and Andrea.
The people around us, the children, the families, the other bloggers, felt the magic of Disney World because of Mickey and fireworks and I felt it because of the person, the mother, THE DAUGHTER, who sat across from me at our table who was willing to put herself out there, to tell me her thoughts.
As soon as I got off of the plane in Orlando and started walking away from the gate, a woman and her identical twins boys walked directly in front of me. They were about four. It was so hard for me because I don’t think I really ever visualized James and Jake at that age. We are missing so much. We will always be missing so much.
Then, a few hours later, a set of twin baby boys were in front of us as we walked.
I started to wonder why was this happening? It was hard enough being in Disney World without my children, this was like throwing salt into the wound. But as the night progressed I realized that it was to show me that despite the pain, magic still exists. Not just at Disney World, but everywhere.
I talked to Ariel on the phone while I was riding the Magical Express, heading towards the resort. The Magical Express is a free transportation service offered to families staying at one of their resorts. I said to her “I would give anything to have you sitting next to me, staring out of the window, excited to see what lays ahead.“ And she said “well, next time you go to Disney World, we’ll go as a family.”
I made a promise to her that somehow, the next time I’m in Disney World, we will all go as a family.
The weekend consisted of waking up extremely early and going to bed extremely late. We walked around all day long and were treated to some of the nicest restaurants around. We totally and completely received the VIP treatment, which was an amazing treat. I’ll never know what I did to deserve to go on this magnificent adventure with these great people, but I’m thanking my lucky stars that I was asked and that I was able to attend.
The highlights for me were meeting the other bloggers on the trip, hanging out with the friendliest of Disney people and actually realizing that a Disney vacation for me and my family, in a resort, can be affordable.
I had no idea. My first visit to Disney was when I was thirty, I always thought Disney World was for other people. But I was wrong.
It’s for everyone.
I will be planning a vacation, when? I don’t know. But I know that there are so many options for me, and I can begin my planning by getting personalized assistance from Moms (the REAL Disney experts), who can help me plan the best trip, the most memorable (AND AFFORDABLE) vacation, for my family.
I boarded the plane towards Orlando wishing that someday I could go and experience a vacation with my family. I left knowing that I can. Now THAT is magic.
——
other bloggers who attended, Lisa @ Crazy Adventures in Parenting, Christine at From Dates to Diapers, Megan at Velveteen Mind, Amanda from Oh Amanda, Marsha at Sweatpants Mom, Dawn at Because I Said So and Lindsay at Surburban Turmoil.
And the person who made it all possible, Maria Bailey.
Subway
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Yesterday afternoon, after touring some of San Francisco by myself, without any directions from anyone, I decided I was very, very hungry. (and obviously, very, very pleased with myself.)
There are tons of places to eat around here, wonderful delis and quaint restaurants.
But I ate at Subway and had a chicken breast sub on white.
I know.
But I made up for it by stopping at Cafe Madeleine’s and indulging in this:
Made the boring sub totally worth it.
Blur
Posted by: | CommentsI was in Disney World this weekend, but it went my SO QUICKLY and we did so much in such a short amount of time. It really was a treat, I feel so lucky to have been chosen to attend, I can’t wait to come back here and tell you more about it.
For now, I am going to bed, but I’ll leave you with proof that I was, in fact, in Disney World.
I can hardly handle the magic that this picture represents.
{Handmade Inspired} What I Want for Mother’s Day
Posted by: | CommentsCan you believe how self-absorbed the title of this post is? At least I can admit it. The truth is, I’m pretty much missing out on Mother’s Day this year because um…I’m going to be in San Francisco without my children, which I’m certain is going to send me into therapy because HOWCANINOTSPENDMOTHERSDAYWITHMYKIDS?
Except it’s not even my fault because we are going there for Brian’s job and he can’t choose which weekend he goes and hello? It’s San Francisco. I’ve never been there and well, I need to go there.
I just wish we could afford to bring the kids along, but we can’t. So, I guess I’ll have to settle with sleeping in and having a vat of coffee delivered to our room just to get out of bed, take a shower and leisurely walk around the city taking photos ALL DAY LONG. (READ: heaven, yo.)
Last year Mother’s Day was pretty much one of the worst days of my life, so I’m hoping that last year sucked and this year I’ll be two thousand miles away from home and next year I can start fresh and start to love and adore Mother’s Day once again.
Man, did I used to love and adore Mother’s Day.
Long story short, I don’t think I’ll be receiving anything for Mother’s Day this year since my plane ticket was so expensive. (but I’m secretly hoping that I’ll still get my two lilac bushes. That would be grand.)
So, let’s pretend that I WILL receive gifts for Mother’s Day and that Brian said “Beth, darling, whatever you desire for Mother’s Day, I shall get for you, I just need a list. With photos and prices on your blog.” So, that’s what I’m doing this week, a small series on what I want for Mother’s Day, even though I won’t get anything.
(I have a sickness living in this pretend world, I realize this.)
I stumbled upon these unbelievable prints. They make my heart soar.
The selection is amazing, but I narrowed it down and I’d love to have all of these that I’ve included in this post. And before you look at these and fall in love, let me just encourage you to buy one for yourself because these are good for your soul. Tell your husband I said so. (and the seller is not sponsoring this post, she doesn’t even know I exist. so there.)
Behold the awesomeness. Each print has a message on the print.
Among the lines on her skirt are my favorites “wear red shoes,” “surround yourself with good people” and “speak of your gratitude.” Can you even handle the loveliness?
Hello, birdie. I love you.
This one is called “I heart your heart.” Oh my gosh, LOVE.
And this one is just breathtaking to me, the red, the power of the message, the butterfly. Oh, the perfection.
Not only are these so amazingly beautiful, the messages are profound and perfect and seriously could make me weep in the most beautiful way upon passing a collage on my wall (in my office, to be exact). The prices vary depending on the size, some are 5×5, some 8×10, the prices ranges from $14 – $18.
This shop, you must visit. LIKE NOW. Don’t you agree? And if you do order something, tell me so I can be jealous of you and also, feel free to go there and tell me which one is your favorite in the comments. We can dream together. That’s what girlfriends do.
