Life. Crazy, Chaotic, Ours!

Sunday Morning & The Mulan Story

So it's early Sunday morning.  We should be getting up to go to Sunday School and Church, but Andrew has had a really icky head cold with fever that has resulted in him getting sick to his stomach every morning from post-nasal drip action.  (Too much detail, I know.)  So instead of going to Sunday School while Daddy is golfing, my three little growing like weeds munchkins kids and I are cuddling and vegging in the big king size bed before starting our day.

As Lola was cuddling with us begging for love, the kids began discussing her name.  It was a very amusing conversation.  It started when Ben asked what Lola's middle name was.  I explained that her name is simply, "Lola Lou".  So, the three of them started talking about giving Lola a new middle name because Ben said "Lou" was to hard to say.

Caroline's suggestions:  tootie (her new favorite word), froggie hops a lot (frogs were on my pj's), and silly willy;

Benjamin's suggestions: Grace, girl, (and our new favorite) sesame;

Andrew's suggestions:  barks-a-lot, Rene' (like me and Lina), and attention (because she's always looking for it).

In the end we all agreed that Lola Lou worked and we would keep her name the same.  Of course, that was after lots of giggles, name calling and a brief discussion about her previous name:  Cotton from her life at the Humane Society before we adopted her.

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Last week I had briefly mentioned our meeting with Mulan in EPCOT last month.  This was truly a highlight of our trip for Caroline and an amusing time for Scott and I.

We were told that Mulan and Mushu could be found in the China Pavilion at high noon each day.  On the second day we set out to play in EPCOT, Mulan was high on our list of things to do.  We did a few things in Future World and made our way rushed over to China to be sure we arrived before noon.  The kids were hungry, so the boys were making quite a fuss about meeting Mulan first and all of us were thirsty.  When we finally rushed into China, making our way into the center gallery/store area, the nice girl told us that Mulan isn't scheduled to arrive until 12:30 p.m.  We were so pleased and impressed with ourselves for arriving in China at 11:50 a.m.  Now we had 40 minutes to kill.  Scott picked up sodas for the kids and we perused menus for lunch - that took all of maybe 10 minutes.  Scott noticed that the China presentation/movie was open and was scheduled to begin at noon, so we made our way into the show.  After sitting down for 15-20 minutes, we found out that the show would take us beyond 12:30 and we didn't want to run the risk of meeting Mulan, so we decided to leave.  Of course, as we walked past the lovely Chinese girl at the entrance, I had to explain why we were leaving (so we would not look rude).  Caroline was with me and the conversation was amusing:

Girl:  You waiting for Mulan and Mushu?

Me:  Yes.  She's one of my daughter's favorites, so we must meet her today.

Girl:  Otay.  You wait here.  I call back and find out when Mulan arrive. 

She makes phone call, speaking in Chinese.  The only words I could understand were Mulan and Mushu.

Girl:  Otay.  Mulan - she be here at 12:30.  No Mushu at 12:30 today.  He not be here.  She come down right there.  You wait outside my door, you see Mulan walk out Gallery.  You then follow her down right there.

Me:  Okay. Thanks so much.  It's okay that we miss Mushu.

Girl:  Now that Mulan.  She very beautiful, but she alway late.  Mulan alway late.  Never on time. She be here at 12:40, maybe 12:45.

Me.  Okay.  We can wait 10 more minutes.  Thanks.

Girl:  She very beautiful.  That Mulan never on time.  She alway late.

So we wait.  Sure enough at 12:43, Mulan walks out of the Gallery, looks over, waves and motions to Caroline and we are second in line for the meet-n-greet.

 

The girl was right.  Mulan was late, but Mulan was beautiful.  Caroline was thrilled, and the boys were very patient and considerate of Caroline's excitement.  Mulan spent a good bit of time with us which was great because Caroline had a zillion questions.  Poor Mulan, she probably didn't realize she was going to get a mental work out from a 3 1/2 year old little girl. 

Caroline asked:

1. Where's your Mommy?
2. Where do you live?
3. What do your shoes look like?
4. Why do you have a comb in your hair?
5. Where's you horse?
6. Where's Mushu?
7. Is your favorite color pink?

She may have asked even more questions, I honestly can't remember everything she said, but I know she grilled poor Mulan who took it all in stride beautifully.  And we had one happy little girl when all was said and done!

 

One last funny story and picture to share from our Disney trip (though I'm sure I'll remember something else later)!

We ate at Tony's Town Square in the Magic Kingdom on this trip.  First time we've eaten there.  It was okay.  Wouldn't recommend it and wouldn't really eat there again, but I'm glad we did it just to say we did.  Service was really slow and the food was just okay. 

We had a really fun time though, laughing with the kids and talking about our upcoming week since this was only our second night in the World.  Apples were a side item for the kids, and by the end of our long, long meal, they were getting a little slap happy while I was experimenting with the settings on my camera and the lighting in the restaurant.  What resulted was the photo below that the kids laugh hysterically over.  Ben has dubbed it:
"THE STARING APPLE PHOTO"

and we laugh like crazy every time we see it. Yes, technically it's terrible.  In fact, it's not even visually pleasing, but it will always be a classic in this family to laugh about our fun trip in Disney!

Disney 08 - Everything You Wanted to Know...

 & More!

So, it's been more than a month since we've returned.  We have two friends who are leaving next week to go to The World with their families.  (Yes, we're very jealous!)  This is my best attempt to recap a wonderful vacation.  We have way too many photos to share them all, but a few are included here.

Of course, it was way too much fun! It was way too hot, too, but that's okay - we survived the heat. and humidity that the recent hurricanes have left behind in Florida!

I can't believe we've made it back to Disney 2 years in a row and that we have reservations for next December with Scott's Mom! How lucky can we be? It's our favorite place, you know, and we were planning dining options for the next trip less than 24 hours after we returned from the recent one!

 

So we traveled approximately 1,000 miles to stay at the Port Orleans, Riverside in Walt Disney World. Friends also vacationed in the World the same time we did. The Fox Family stayed at the All Star Music Resort and the Rills were staying at Port Orleans, Riverside also. Now keep in mind that Port Orleans is a sprawling resort - a moderate priced one that is often crowded because it holds 5 people per room rather than the standard 4 per room as most moderate and value resorts in Disney. And I can honestly say it was packed this past trip! Imagine our shock and surprise on Sunday (the day after we arrived) when we found out that the Rills had been assigned the room right next to us! Couldn't have worked out better if we had asked to be close. The kids thought it was way cool to have them next door, jump in the pool together occasionally and just have them nearby to tease and torment! Of course, it was fun for Scott, Darrin, Cheryl & I to also jibber-jab until the wee hours of the morning near the end of the week laughing and recounting our adventures in the World.

 
For a quick week recap:

• We had lots of breakfasts with lots of characters. (We went a little overboard doing character breakfasts this time! Just seemed to fit better into our dining plans!)
• We spent half day with the Rills visiting Future World in EPCOT (after one of our character breakfasts).
• We were granted a "dream" from Year of A Million Dreams Squad! How exciting! It was on our first full day in the parks (Hollywood Studios). It had been a particularly grueling day as Caroline was acclimating herself to the weather and pace. Near the end of the day I stopped a cast member hoping to find Wall.E and Eva and Lewis & Wilbur from Meet the Robinsons. We talked for over 20 minutes about various topics. At one point she gave Caroline a special Tinkerbell pin and then when Ben said he wanted to go get ice cream, she said me, too and said it was her treat! We ended up settling on cold sodas because we were so hot and thirsty, but they were totally on Disney and it was way cool! Holly, our "Dream Girl" was also way cool and we were fortunate to have her stop for a photo with the crew!   
• Both the boys rode Splash Mountain for the first time and LOVED it! (Caroline's too short!)
• Caroline met Mulan, Cinderella's Fairy Godmother, Ariel (as the mermaid) and Mary Poppins this time, so our vacation was "positively perfect" in her book!
• The boys got their picture taken with (and autograph of) a Power Ranger (that was a must do this time!).
• We rode Soarin' twice again! (Caroline's too short for this also; she waited out with Mommy one time and with Daddy one time!)
• Andrew has decided Soarin' is his Number 2 ride; Test Track has taken over the Number 1!
• Ben was excited to go to Japan on this trip - he found Pokemon AND Bakugan! Major score!
• We actually got in the hotel pool several times this trip. Normally, we are so busy in the Parks, we don't make it to the pool.
• The kids got their hair cut and "color goo'ed" at the Barber Shop on Main Street. It truly was the best hair cut Benjamin has ever gotten in his life!
• The kids met Jiminy Cricket and Captain Hook for the first time. (Ben was so excited about meeting Jiminy, he took off from Scott to find me in Main Street square and ran to the wrong corner!   
• Caroline's favorite ride was Cinderella's Carousel, but the Tea Cups were a huge hit and she said Dumbo was her favorite "rollercoaster"!
• Had dinner with the Rill and the Fox Families on the Boardwalk. The kids truly had a blast running around on the Boardwalk and Abby & Caroline enjoyed making silly faces together at dinner.
• We celebrated Andrew's 10th Birthday in Disney. He wore a button all day that said "Happy Birthday" and Ben told him that he made all of us famous because so many people were saying Happy Birthday to him! We ordered a special Goofy cake from the Boardwalk Bakery for dinner at the restaurant and Goofy even sent an autographed Birthday photo to our room for him!
• We met the Mad Hatter for the first time this year. He was truly a bizarro, but true-to-form character. Had a great time watching the boys interact with his quirky, dry sense of humor.
• Andrew got his Costa Rica coke from Club Cool - a must do each trip to EPCOT.
• A couple of things we wanted to do the past two times, but have yet to get around to it are miniature golf and riding the surrey bikes at the Boardwalk or Port Orleans. Oh well, maybe next time. Slowly, but surely, we are crossing off some of these miscellaneous activities.
• The boys got their driving licenses on our last day of vacation when they drove the Speedway cars.
• The boys and Scott enjoyed the Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular while Caroline & I went to Playhouse Disney and did a little bit of shopping.
• Did I mention that Caroline took 7 pairs of shoes to Disney? Oh, and she bought a pair of Princess flip flops while there, too.   (How about this?  Scott was actually the only one who spotted Pocahontas as we were heading out of Animal Kingdom.  We were the first to  meet her as she walked out near the entrance to the Park.  Pocahontas was on Caroline's "top Princess meet-n-greet list", so she was way excited.  Pocahontas was stunningly beautiful too - I suspect that's why Scott spotted her so quickly!)
• All 5 of us rode Kali River Rapids. Surprisingly, we got wet but not soaked. (The father and son sitting directly to my right got drenched; I really lucked out!)
• We saw the Magic Kingdom Parade and the Toy Story Block Party Parade in Hollywood Studios.
• When we were in Japan (Ben thought we were truly in Japan, not the one in EPCOT, but the one many seas away), Caroline had a major monumental temper tantrum and meltdown - so bad that we had to strap her in the stoller and she made herself throw up a bit - it was way embarassing and the fist time Scott had every witnessed this.  (Fortunately, these tantrums/meltdowns only seemed to have last a month - we have not had them since this fateful day in EPCOT, but, I digress...)  Scott took her to the side as the boys met Genie and Aladdin.  As we were finishing up with our photo op, Scott and Caroline moved closer and Aladdin waved to Caroline and said "Hi, Princess" to her.  Bad move on Al's part.  She looked right at him and screamed in his face.  (Not one of her finer moments.)  Aladdin took it all in stride though.  He told the boys that she was acting like Abu and he was totally used to it! 
• Of course, when we met Mulan & Belle, she was the perfect little princess.  In fact, Caroline told Belle that she lived in Disney World when Belle asked her where she was from!  She was very curious about where her horse Phillipe was, also.  And poor, Mulan - she had so many questions for her.  But Mulan is just a completely different story for another day!  That Mulan is quite a character, you know - or maybe you don't, because we had no idea until we talked to the cast members in Japan, EPCOT!
• Had so many other adventures and rode on so many rides and attractions, I could never name them all!

Disney is truly, hands down, our favorite family vacation destination. We are a family who likes to keep busy and spend lots of time together, so it's the perfect place for us. Even though Caroline is prone to temper tantrums (she is 3 years old after all and hates excessive heat), we still have so much fun together during our vacation in Disney we always hate to come home. The boys did a great job of completing most of their school work during quiet time in the hotel room and the Ipod Shuffles worked out great for airport and flying entertainment. Caroline and I shared mine sometimes and the most difficult part of flying with her was convincing her to stop singing so loud!

To us, it's inarguable that Walt Disney World is the most magical place on Earth. Walking down Main Street, USA gives you such a feeling of happiness and amazement. Each and every time Scott & I are there, we pause in front of the statue of Walt Disney & Mickey near the castle and continue to be in awe of Walt's creative talent and foresight. How exciting it is that nearly 80 years after it all began with the introduction of the World's most famous Mouse, we can all still act like children in Neverland, laughing and exploring our way through the happiest place on earth!

Thank you Walt and the Imagineers who walked beside him and after him to carry forward his dream.

(photo above copyright William Drew)

Today...

I AM...content [with my family life], but anxious [about getting everything done].

I WANT...chocolate chip cookie dough and another day off!

I HAVE...three adorable kids, an awesome husband, dry contacts and a clean kitchen sink!

I KEEP...too many papers.  I am a paper packrat.

I WISH I COULD...completely overhaul my basement without worrying about the cost!

I HATE...ignorance, rudeness and poor manners!

I FEAR...dying young and the people I care about not knowing how much I love and appreciate them.

I HEAR...Spongebob Squarepants on the tv above me and the boys laughing.

I DON'T THINK...I'll get around to exercising tonight.

I REGRET...that I didn't exercise today.

I LOVE...little arms wrapped tightly around my neck, "love you" yelled as all of my boys (Scott, too) walk out the door, and all five of us cuddled in bed for family movie night.

I AM NOT...caught up on everything in life.

I DANCE...frequently with the kids.  They think it's fun!

I SING...a lot ... lots of 80's songs, contemporary Christian songs, Disney songs ... oh, let's face it, I'll sing anything I know the words to!

I NEVER...make it through the day without having chocolate.

I RARELY...tell people when I'm angry with them.

I SHOULD...exercise daily and put lotion on my feet every night.

I ALWAYS...have a clean sink when I go to bed at night (it's an obsession of mine) and take lots and lots of photos.

I AM TRYING...to be better about flossing my teeth and exercising daily.

I CRY WHEN I WATCH...pretty much anything!

I AM NOT ALWAYS...on time. Ha!  Okay, let me tell you something that most of you don't know ... I am not always patient.

I HATE THAT... I'm so worried about everything all the time.  (Even little trivial things.)

I'M CONFUSED ABOUT...this year's Presidential election.  (Winners, eh?)

I NEED... chocolate and more time to scrapbook!

I SHOULD... go tuck the boys in bed since Scott & LinaBean are alredy sleeping!

Happy Day Tomorrow ... Be sure to make it a good one!

This is good ... right now!

• Conversation with Andrew as we were making blueberry muffins.

He was telling me about how George Bush's Mom made him eat broccoli every day when he was little and that when you become President, you don't have to eat something you don't like any more. I noted that I had never made him eat broccoli or anything else if he didn't like it after it was sampled. He simply said, "Well I think George Bush wishes he had you for his Mom!"

• Conversation with Benjamin as we were walking to Jake's house.
He says he's probably not going to Disney World a lot when he grows up for two reasons. The first one is that he doesn't intend to drive - he intends to walk everywhere for good exercise and just because it's better for the air. Disney World would be an awfully far walk from our home! The second reason he won't go much is because he doesn't intend to get married and he believes you only go there when you have kids. Tried to dispel that theory for him - still have a lot of work to do there!
• Caroline - An adjustment in clothing?
We've started curbing down the amount of times we change our clothes each day. I started getting her under control in Disney World by packing 2 outfits in a ziploc bag and letting her pull one ziploc bag out of the drawer each day. She then had her choice of the 2 outfits to wear but could not pull another bag; she was limited to the bag in her hand. Seems to have worked a good bit. She still thinks she is a princess, so we do dress up a lot, but she is managing to get away with 2 regular sets of clothing each day. Oh, and yes, her panties totally have to match her clothing. She's way into the "Match Game".

• Nights in Rodanthe - the book.
Just read it in one day flat. It's the first "grown up" book I've been able to read in a long while. Ben was sick, so I was holding him for an hour or so, then I picked it back up last night while everyone was settling into bed. So good; can't wait to see the movie now ... and ... I picked up another book this morning at Targee'. It's called Grace by Richard Paul Evans. Yeah, I like the short ones - you know, instant gratification!

• Apples, Crisp Air and Fall.
Fall is so my favorite time or the year! Love the beauty of the trees and the crispness in the air - not too cool, just crisp and sharp. We picked up Halloween costumes last week so we're good to go! Andrew is a Scorpion Nina, Ben is a Clone Trooper and Caroline will be a Butterfly Princess. Can't wait! We have a Halloween Party, the Pumpkin Patch and ZooBoo all within one week so they may be living in their costumes for a few days - ah to be little again!
• House Projects.
After weeks of seriously busy, hectic - but fun - activities and running, we've started to slow down. That means that we're finally able to start tackling the clutter and excess piling up in our house as well as fixing and tweaking those things that need updating/adjusting. We finally have a good working master bathroom sink (Scott found 2 toothbrushes jammed in the pipes). He also finished installing shelves in our basement laundry/storage room. I've organized all of the Christmas presents purchased so far. I've also cleaned out and purged a few things here and there. This week will officially be Ebay/Craig's List week to get rid of the items on/over/under the "Excess" table in the computer room.

Will work on the Disney Wrap/Update sometime over the next week. Aside from Guitar class on Tuesday for Andrew, the week looks amazingly non-hectic. I know I shouldn't be saying that one out loud, but, well, I just did! (I probably just overlooked something on the calendar, anyway!)

And we all know I hate to post without a little eye candy, so:

 

This boy has the confidence of his father, for sure!

 

Talent, right?  Yes, that's a peanut M&M in his belly button, and no, I did not let him eat it after the stunt!  (Sorry so dark, we were having flash (or I should say non-flash) issues this day!

 

This little girl spent a gi-normous amount of time on the playset and swings this Summer!

   

And now it's time to say goodbye to all our company ~

 

See you real soon!