Opus Gluei - #40 - Soup to Nuts

Nope, we aren't talking food here. We are talking an Opus Gluei challenge which is pretty much wide open.

You can either Start (soup) a project or Finish (nuts) a project.

In accordance with my VISION for this year, I have chosen Nuts.

I am finishing my Disney 2009 Album.

(I am not quite finished. The cover needs a little something... So far I have covered bookboard with a map of the Magic Kingdom and added alpha sitckers. I also added some keychain bling. I will add the ribbons when I am finished. It still looks naked to me, so I will add something else. Once I figure out what that something is.)

I started this album before we went to Disney World in August.

I got the pictures ordered a few weeks ago. Another VISION 2010 item.

I took the album, the pictures and a few essential supplies with me to Florida last week.

(Since we were there for our Anniversary, I added a couple of pics of us. The girls are kind of grossed out with us kissing in the one. One of the benefits of being the parents. teeheehee The Happy Anniversary buttons were given to us by Disney. How frickin cool is that?)

(I glued some of the pictures on the backs of the park brochures. I love how they "blend" into the feel of the brochure. Yup those are my lovely daughters on the DUMBO ride.)

(I journalled each night while at Disney, so it made it easy to glue the pictures either on the pages or back to back in the appropriate spots.)


I managed to get over 100 pictures in this album. YEAH!

I would have finished embellishing the album except for a little bit of drama that came up with one of my fellow travelers.

But as it turns out, I have a day off tomorrow due to the snow we got Friday night and Saturday, SO, I will finish it up today and tomorrow.

Feels good to get another one FINISHED.

Fairies are worth the wait.

I promised you more. We waited for an hour to meet the fairies in Toontown.

This was the longest line we waited for at Disney for anything.

It was worth it for the smile on my little girls face.
She was in heaven.

I think Tinkerbell sprinkled pixie dust on her because she was floating the rest of the day.

Morgan in an animal talent fairy for sure.

Fawn didn't stop talking the entire time we were there.

Surely that is one of the traits of the animal talent fairies.

(pages are digital quick pages from Digital Freebies. Autumnal Taste is the name of the collection. Font on journaling is Walt Script. And there are a couple of elements added in from Seebee's Freebies.)

Vacation Vacation

(Family portrait taken at 1900 Park Fare. Just kidding. This is my family with Lady Tremaine. She is one scary lady. I wish I could get Megan to jump out of her seat like she did. Maybe I should go to the Lady Tremaine School at Disney. She was very scary. She had me shaking in my boots.)

Yup. We are taking a vacation after the vacation. After 5 days of running around humid, hot Orlando, we need to take a few to relax, rest up and re-charge. Dorothy was SO right. There is NO place like home. I missed my bed, my pillow and my computer. I might not post a lot, or often, but I do some serious surfing. I missed lurking on all my favorite blogs. I feel like I am behind. Don't know what I am behind in, but I feel behind.

Today was the first of many school clothes shopping trips. DD2 and DD3 still need jeans. And maybe a couple new tops. We don't go all out in this house. It's still hot and summer weather here. Instead it is a constant school clothes quest. Today, however, couldn't be helped. Of all 3 girls there is only one, Megan, who had jeans that fit. And only 2 pair. Silly me. I can't bear the thought of them having less than 5 pair. 6 or 7 would be optimum for me. So Megan and I went to a department store where she wandered around not saying much and grabbing fewer items off the racks. Taking her shopping is B-O-R-I-N-G. I love the kid, but she isn't a shopper. She will walk around and only pause at very few racks. And then she only picks up 1 in 10 items she pauses to look at. I have learned not to make suggestions. Unless I am really, really, really B-O-R-E-D. Then I will only make a suggestion to get the eye-roll. Which, sadly, amuses me. I know I should get mad. Some would view it as dis-respect. I view it for what it is. Poor thing. I mean, come on. I am getting DUMBER and DUMBER by the minute, at this point in her life. She is 14 going on wise-old-pain-in-the-rear-I-know-it-all-my-parents-are-idiots. Not such a bad thing. I remember when my parents got dumb. I remember thinking "How in the world did they survive this long without me there to get them through life?!?!?!" Now I can sit back and laugh at myself, but then, I was way to out to show "THEM" what I was made of. I only wish I knew a 10th of what I thought I knew then. I would be a frickin' genius. No lie.

Anyway, I am almost rested enough to get some crafty goodness going. I have to get my Opus Gluei project done. I was supposed to have gotten it done today, but somehow playing a game of CLUE with my family seemed to take priority. So, I will work it in the morning. Just have to figure out what to do. It may be a quick card. Or an ATC. Or an inchie or twinchie. Or who knows???

Well, it's off to sleep for a bit now. More later...

Disney Adventure 2009 - Day 7

Magical Express to the airport.

Fly HOME.

Happy, tired and ready for my own bed.

Disney Adventure 2009 - Day 6

Magic Kingdom. (Yup, again. I love this park.)

Dreams Parade.

Dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern.

Wishes Fireworks.

Hotel for rest and packing.

Disney Adventure 2009 - Day 5

EPCOT.

Melissa and Danny swim with the fishes in the big tank.

Dinner at Garden Grill.

Fireworks.

Hotel for sleepin'.

Disney Adventure 2009 - Day 4

Animal Kingdom.

Hotel for a little dip in the pool.

Downtown Disney for dinner at Planet Hollywood.

Arcades.

Hotel for a bit more rest.

Disney Adventure 2009 - Day 3

Hollywood Studios.

Dinner at the 50's Prime Time Cafe.

Hotel for rest and relaxation.

Disney Adventure 2009 - Day 2

Magic Kingdom.

Hotel in the PM for a bit in the pool.

Dinner at 1900 Park Fare.

16th Anniversary celebration.

Fireworks at Magic Kingdom.

Disney Adventure 2009 - Day 1

I know that my ticker says that we have 3 days

until we start our Disney Adventure,

but we had to re-schedule so,

Today we fly to Florida.

Magical Express to Port Orleans Riverside.

Downtown Disney for dinner at

Wolfgang Puck's restaurant.

EPCOT for fireworks.

Ready, set to go in 5 days

I am so very ready for this vacation. I haven't had a vacation without kids or hubby in along time. Since right after we got married. I'll tell you about the Alaska trip another time.

I am ready to leave them all for a week. Let them see how I cater to them. I am tired of being the only one that can come up with an idea for dinner. Only to have it shot down like an enemy plane. I am tired of not being able to make what I want to for dinner. Because this one doesn't like it and that one doesn't FEEL like having it and the other one had it for lunch.

I am ready to take care of myself. I am ready to take responsibility for my actions. And only mine. I am ready to only worry about getting myself out the door. I am ready to take only what I will need for the day. I am ready to cut only my meat at mealtime.

I will be a better mother when I return from my vacation. I will be ready to cater to them again.

But for now, I NEED to pamper myself. I am getting the fake nails. I am taking 3 bathing suits. I am going to shop this week for another cute outfit. Even if I have enough clothes as it is. I just want something new to wear. Heck, I may go wild and get two new outfits. And shoes. Gotta get new shoes. So I need the pedicure too. And better see if Robby can fit me in for a hair appt.

Sorry if I sounded whiney just now. I am normally not a whiney person. I will stop now.

Christmas Vacation

This Christmas was just like the good old days. There were lots of cousins. There was chaos. There was constant noise. There were gifts that were "forgotten" until the last minutes. Santa showed up in the wee hours of the morning. Nothing was formal. Everything seemed rushed. We only had 4 1/2 days with my family.

We left our home Saturday morning at 7:50 am. Yup, I said am. Danny is a tyrant when it comes to hittin' the road. He wanted to leave at 8 am. We beat him. Yay us!!!! We drove to Atlanta and checked into a Courtyard by Marriott. It had an indoor pool for the girls. It would have been for us too if we hadn't forgotten our swimsuits. :( I used my Marriott reward points for the stay, because I could. Can't beat that deal now, can ya!

The next day we ate at the hotel restaurant and were on the road by 8:25am. (He was shooting for 9am, so we beat him again.) We arrived at my parents house around 1:30ish. The dog, Bessie Lulu was barking up a storm inside the house. My parents weren't home. They weren't expecting us until 2:30ish. They were out shopping for groceries. We helped them tote the TONS of food into the house. There were to be 16 of us for Christmas Eve and Christmas dinners. Not to mention the meals in leading to those feasts. There were 2 turkeys, 2 hams, 4 pounds of butter, 4 beef roasts, a 17 pound prime rib and ALL the side dish ingredients. YUM-O.
Renee, Billy and Aaron showed up and the fun really started. I really miss not seeing them more often. It is just so far away and so expensive to fly.

My nephews are men now. How in the world did time fly so quickly. They are gorgeous men. The girls are after them too. Aaron is in LOVE with his girl friend, so sorry girls, he is taken. Ryan is busy planning for his future. Which right now is the Coast Guard. (I am not so secretly hoping they turn him down. I want him to go straight to college.)

More later...