The Goings On

The BFF came to visit! She drove 8 hours with 2 kids to see me! Well, and others too. But I like to think it was mostly me. We had a great time visiting...it was as if she had never left! I was very sad to see her go...but hope we can continue these cross-country visits. We managed to get one picture of us-from her phone. Must do better with pictures next time.


Vistaprint has consumed my life for the past few days. I can.not.stop.myself. I am completely making things up at this point, but I just can't NOT order when it is only costing me $1.24 for SOOOO much stuff! And having all of this stuff will require me to purchase more organizing containers to store it, furthering my obsession of all things organizing. I need help.

I refuse to count the days left of summer. Suffice it to say, June went way too fast. I literally cannot believe it is already July. And I saw school supplies out at Target. Lalalalala. Covering my ears and living in denial!

This is fair week in our county. And we are under a heat advisory with the heat index nearing 110. Oh, and it's hay baling time as well. Those things ALWAYS fall on the hottest damn week of the year. Always. The kids have been begging me to schlep them to the fair and I put it off all weekend. Little did I know those 90 degree days were going to be the coolest of the week.

I have been redoing our kitchen. Wallpaper removed. Glue scraped. New paint applied. New microwave. New dishwasher is to arrive tomorrow. Next step? Replace the countertop, new backsplash of some (cheap) kind, repaint the cabinets, new hardware, new Roman shade blinds. Then we wait for the refrigerator and stove to die. :) I'll post pictures of the before and after when I am finished!

Stay cool this week! And if anyone wants to take my kids to the fair, let me know!

Disney World Recap

We came, we saw, we kicked Disney's ass.

Okay, Disney pretty much kicked our asses...but it was so much fun!



We kept the vacation a secret until we arrived at the airport. Right before we left, we brought the luggage out and told the kids we were staying at a hotel in Indianapolis. They totally bought it because we had just done that a few weeks ago. Cole started crying because he wanted to stay on the farm and NOT go to a hotel!

We got to the airport shuttle stop and told the kids where we were really going! They couldn't believe it! They were almost more excited to hear that Aunt Susie and the baby (and baby #2) were coming along too!


We stayed at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort. The rooms were good, setting was nice, food court and swimming pools were great!


We spent the first day at Magic Kingdom. And it was magical, albeit hot.


Cole got picked to drive the boat during the jungle cruise. He took his responsibility very seriously.


We also climbed the Swiss Family Treehouse, rode the magic carpets of Aladdin and the carousel, and joined Captain Jack Sparrow on the Pirates of the Caribbean.

We rode Splash Mountain, It's a Small Word, and Dumbo the Flying Elephants. We saw the Country Bear Jamboree (dumb!), the Carousel of Progress, and Mickey's PhilharMagic (my favorite part!)

The second day brought us to Animal Kingdom.

We went on the safari


and watched the Flights of Wonder bird show.


We also watched It's Tough to be a Bug (SO great!)

Festival of the Lion King

rode the Wildlife Express Train to Rafiki's Planet Watch

spent some time at Dinoland

and then mommy and daddy rode Expedition Everest sans children.

Favorite part of Animal Kingdom? Definitely the Bug's Life 3D show!

Day 3 was Epcot.


It was fun exploring the countries in Epcot. We watched a movie in China, ate in Germany, and walked through all the other countries.


We had lunch with the princesses at the Norway castle. Claire was in princess heaven. We saw Belle, Aurora, Ariel, Snow White, and Cinderella. She had her picture taken with each princess, got a hug, and even went on the princess parade through the restaurant.




We also rode the Seas with Nemo

went on Soarin', played in ImageWorks and rode Mission: Space, Living with the Land, and Test Track.


Favorite part of Epcot? Besides seeing Claire's face during the princess lunch, it would have to be Soarin! So fun!

Day 4 was Hollywood Studios. Very hot and crowded, thanks to Star Wars weekend. But we had a great time, nonetheless.


We left the kids with Aunt Susie and did Tower of Terror. Scary.


We all did Rock 'n Roller Coaster. I cannot believe how great the kids did-their first big roller coaster and they loved it! It went super fast, upside down, corkscrews, you name it! I was the only scared one!


The boys enjoyed the Indiana Jones Stunt Show while the girls watched the Little Mermaid show. Then we all rode the Toy Story Mania ride. So fun! But oh-so-thankful for Fast Passes! That ride had a 2 hour wait most of the day.


We also saw the Muppet Vision 3D, Lights, Motors, Action! Extreme Stunt Show, and the Beauty and the Beast Musical.


Favorite part of Hollywood Studios? All of it! Except the heat and crowd!


3:30 Monday morning came very early. The bellman came at 4:20 to pick us and our luggage up to bring us to the main desk. We then boarded the Disney Magical Express at 5:00 a.m. to go to the airport. We boarded the plane at 7:30 a.m. and were home by noon.


We had a great time during our first trip to Walt Disney World, but were all happy to get home! Now it officially feels like summer break!

Nine Days

I start school in nine days.

Hmpf.

Typing that makes me physically ill. I get stomach cramps. And then I begin to sweat. My mouth gets dry. I start wringing my hands.

It cannot be true, right? How can my summer be nearly over? It just started!

You know that saying, "The three best things about being a teacher: June, July, and August." It just doesn't apply anymore. I was still in school in June. I have worked in my classroom several times in July. And I go back to school the second week in August.

Here is a to-do list I made on my first day of summer break.

*shopping and lunches out alone and with friends
*a 2-day getaway with just the hubby to Chicago for our 10 year wedding anniversary

*a little mini-vacation with the kiddos...not sure where yet

*Jungle Jim's, Ikea, Newport Aquarium

*house cleaning

*new mulch on the flower beds

*zoo

*Children's Museum

*swimming

*hanging out with my wonderful kids!

At least I managed to get many of those things crossed off in our short time off. I hope to get the rest of the things crossed off too.

In nine days.

*sigh*

Summer Break Giveaway! TIME'S UP!!

Because I am officially d-o-n-e with this school year, I am having a summertime giveaway! One lucky reader will win this summertime prize package:


The package includes:

*beach towel
*sunscreen
*a new copy of the best book I've read so far this year, The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes
*$10 gift card to Target
*$10 gift card to Starbucks


TO ENTER

To enter to win this giveaway, just answer this question in the comments:

What is one thing you plan to do this summer?

THE RULES

One entry per person
Contest ends Friday, June 11 at 8:00 p.m. EDT
Winner will be selected by Random.org
Contest sponsored by Me, Myself, and I
Good luck!

The End

Tomorrow I will finish my eleventh year of teaching. Where those 11 years went is beyond me!

I am so very glad this year is over. It has been long and challenging. I am looking forward to a fun, relaxing summer with my family and friends.

Some of my plans include:

*shopping and lunches out alone and with friends
*a 2-day getaway with just the hubby to Chicago for our 10 year wedding anniversary

*a little mini-vacation with the kiddos...not sure where yet

*Jungle Jim's, Ikea, Newport Aquarium

*house cleaning

*new mulch on the flower beds

*zoo

*Children's Museum

*swimming

*hanging out with my wonderful kids!

Wish me luck tomorrow. It's sure to be a long, emotional day.

Ooh, and check back here Thursday. I have a fun little summer giveaway I put together to celebrate the start of my summer vacation!