Call to Disney

I called Disney. Lord, help.me.now. I called Disney.

I wanted to ask about some vacation plans we have because we are going to Disneyworld/Universal Studios/Orlando in October. My kids are excited, so I get on the phone to inquire about a Halloween Fireworks thingamajiggy.

Operator: Hello, Disney Vacation somethingorother. How can I help you?
Me: Yes, I want to see when I should buy tickets to the Halloween Fireworks thingamajiggy.
Operator: We have wonderful packages! Would you also be interested in the Breakfast in Cinderella's Castle with the characters?
Me: Um, not really. Just the Halloween Fireworks thingamajiggy.
Operator: We also offer packages for the entire family.Let me ask how old your children are.
Me: They're 14 and 5, so there's a huge age difference and we're aware of that challenge. So, I just want to know about your Halloween Fireworks thingamajiggy.
((DEAFENING SILENCE))
Operator: Let me transfer you.
Me: Why?
Operator: Someone else can better assist you in this.

The conversation went on and on, and ultimately, I had a basic question...

Why the HECK is it so hard to schedule a simple ticket purchase for Halloween activities at Disneyworld?

When did this freaking thing called Disneyworld become this huge monster where parents must call on a certain day, press a certain button and be tranferred to a certain line to order Breakfast in Cinderella's Castle tickets?

My daughter loves Cinderella, but I am fairly certain she won't die a horrible and painful death if she doesn't eat breakfast with Cinderella. Besides, everyone knows Cinderella is NOT REAL! (Parents, take note. She's NOT REAL!)

So, we're going to Disney and we've already got our room thanks to The Man's employer. (Yea for huge auditing companies!) I will make arrangements for the Halloween Fireworks Thingamajiggy but that's it. I'm playing it by ear. I cannot, just cannot fathom wasting my mornings 180 days prior to my visit trying to dial Disney first thing Monday morning, 8amEST, with every human I know trying to get on the line for Cinderella Breakfast tickets. IHOP will suffice, I'm sure.

I have, like, a million recipes to post. And, like a million and one reasons as to why I'm too busy to do it!

Days of Summer

Since the weather here in Texas, at this moment, is unbearably hot, I spend most of my time indoors. However, every morning at 5am, I've been outside swimming! We have three beautiful pools, and one of the pools I go to has what I think is called an negative infinity edge or something like that.Here's an example of one:

The pool does have an edge, but you can't see it. It just blends with the hill countryside and it looks freaking amazing. At 5am, I get so many chances to just connect with life, with God, with myself. At 5am, the stars are still out, the birds aren't even out yet.

Today at the pool I saw and heard frogs, crickets, and even heard a rattlesnake. But, it didn't even phase me. The fact that I'm exercising for at least an hour a day alone, and I am doing something I love makes it all worth it. I want to try to take my camera one morning and I can post the pink sky at sunrise, and the beautiful hill views. I'm blessed to have three pools like that here in my subdivision!

I love swimming!

When the cat's away

When the husband is away, the wife, kids, and dog play.

When The Man is away, we miss him terribly. Normally he travels, so being apart isn't too difficult. But, lately, now that he's living here full-time, it's hard for him to be gone. We miss him a lot! He's in Toronto and we wanted to go, but still, didn't seem like much fun without him there to entertain with us. (He's working all week.)

The Rockstar has kept busy by helping re-build our church's stage! He has had cuts, bruises, sore muscles, fiberglass pain, and sweat but has been a valuable asset to the church and all its endeavors.

We considered moving to another church. I'll be honest. However, as a couple, The Man and I feel we're not done with ours just yet. We have to have faith in that, and we do. So, we're staying put for the time being and hope it's for the long haul. It's our family and we can't leave, we won't leave.

The Princess is going to be five in six days! Her brother got her the Little Mermaid II movie yesterday and she got super-excited. Then, he gave her $3 which is amazing because he is not one to part with money! She started crying saying she didn't want money, but we think she may have felt it was in exchange for the movie, which it was not. Either way, we decided he can buy her a cool card with the money and she can keep the movie, which she's already watched 3 times since yesterday.

Life for me is fairly mundane. I stopped documenting my nightly dinners simply because we've had pizza for dinner and had Taco Bell one day. When the hubby's not here, things change. But, tonight we're back to normal. I don't have the camera (can't find it) so dinner pics will have to wait. I continue to walk on the treadmill I dragged into my living room and will also continue to watch what I eat.

At the end of last week, I fasted for 2 days. There had been so much clarity in my mind regarding our church and our decision to stay, and I think fasting got me to a place I normally don't go because of being bogged down by daily things. I prayed a lot those two days and surprise! My answers became crystal clear. For that, I am thankful. It does work!

All This Prayer Gives Me the Sleepies...

I've had a few things happening lately and don't know what to do.

1) I'm going through a weird thing with my church. I LOVE it and love everything about it, but there are some things I need to address privately. It's just frustrating.

2) I am just down. I can't pick myself out of a slump and a lot of prayer is needed for me at this time. I need to focus. When I don't focus and pray or at least thank God for his blessings, I get moody, cranky, and weird.

3) I'm worried about our India trip. I know it's stupid, but I worry about the flights, missing Christmas with my family, and worry about The Man's parents or family hating me. Kind of stupid, yes. But, it's a reality.

It's been a rough time. I just need to regroup but don't know how. Don't you hate that feeling??

Five For Friday

Didn't make my Thursday ones, so here are Friday's thankful things.

-I'm thankful for the time we spend with friends, especially my 2 friends from my homegroup. They make life fun and interesting.
-I'm thankful for the home I have and the neighborhood I live in, even though I really don't like it.
-I'm thankful for the ability to talk to friends about misconceptions and unhappiness on my part. They are great support systems.
-I'm thankful my husband is still working here in Austin.
-I'm thankful for my hairdresser. She is fun and amazing, and gives me desire to better myself. She's a great presence and probably doesn't even know it.

Thankful Thursday

A friend online does these and I am going to start them as well. When I suffered with post-partum depression, I had a wonderful doctor who told me each day, I had to tell someone 3 things I was thankful for or that went well. When you have PPD, it's hard to come up with one, let alone three.

So, now I am going to revert to that same idea of being thankful for my blessings! It's something that's healthy and re-trains my mind to see the good and not always the bad.

I'm thankful for:

My family (Parents, uncles, children, etc...)
My home. It is gorgeous and I need to appreciate it more.
My friends, who continue to be rocks when I'm sometimes sand rolling away in the tide.
My faith. It's another rock I need a lot.
My puppy. It may seem weird, but the unconditional love I feel from him is sometimes amazing.