Love Rollercoasters - Love Aerosmith - HEL-LO

You know her.

You either love her (me) or you hate her (my husband).

She's Stacey.

She's the overly-caffeinated chick who counts down the top 7 Must See (because Disney strategically selected something from every bus destination so that you'll be sure to spend as much money as possible) Attractions. There is something about it that makes me happy.

Upon check-in at our resort I immediately check-in with Stacey. My husband tolerates it at that moment. However, by the 5th time around he's over it and makes his feelings clear. This is the same man who can watch the continuous Sports Center loop over and over without blinking, but Stacey has a limit.

I can hardly wait to tell him she's available on youtube and we can watch from home...on a continuous loop

No Room At the Inn

I just called the familiar 407-W-Disney number to book our room.

We stayed at the Caribbean Beach Resort a few months ago and really enjoyed it. We had planned to return there in April.

I was told they were sold out.

In fact, I was told the entire property was sold out with the exception of the Honeymoon Suite at the Wilderness Lodge. As lovely as that sounded, I had to pass. I'm sure something will open up, but wow!

Is Disney immune from the threats of the economy?

Just for reference:

All-Star Movies Resort 1920
All-Star Music Resort 1728
All-Star Sports Resort 1920
Pop Century Classic Years Resort 2880

Total Value Resort Rooms 8448

Caribbean Beach Resort 2112
Coronado Springs Resort 1921
Port Orleans French Quarter Resort 1008
Port Orleans Riverside Resort 2048

Total Moderate Resort Rooms 7089

Beach Club Villas 280
Boardwalk Villas 520
Old Key West Resort 761
Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa 552
Villas at Wilderness Lodge 181

Total Vacation Club Villas 2294
(lock-off villas counted as separate rooms)

Animal Kingdom Lodge 1293
Beach Club Resort 576
Boardwalk Inn 372
Contemporary Resort 1008
Grand Floridian Resort & Spa 867
Polynesian Resort 847
Wilderness Lodge 727
Yacht Club Resort 621

Total Deluxe Resort Rooms 6311

Fort Wilderness Resort 1191
( 784 Campsites, 407 Cabins )

Total Disney Owned Guest Accommodations 25,333

If the Slipper Fits...

It was Friday afternoon. My desire to primp before work had waned somewhere around Hump Day and nobody has to tell me twice that the dress code at school on Friday is casual. So dressed in jeans and my black shirt du jour, sporting a deflated ponytail, bags under my eyes and the frazzled look of an elementary school teacher who had just survived a day in the trenches, I went to pick up my son at preschool.

As I was putting him in the car he looked at me and said, "Mommy, your hair looks beautiful. You look like a princess." Not sure where he had aquired the adjective or the noun in that phrase, I simply accepted the compliment.

Moments later we were home. I had bought some Cinderella stickers for a custom layout I am making for a client and as I was taking them out of the bag Camden took notice. He looked at the stickers, at me, back at the stickers and then back at me. He then said with great conviction, "Mommy you look like Cinderella." She's blond. I'm not. She has blue eyes. I have brown. Although I often act like there is a tiara on my head there isn't.

As I was pondering his attempted flattery he moved onto the next topic. He asked, "Can I have some M&Ms." Hmmmm. He just turned 3. Coincidence or advanced sweet-talking skills? Either way I'll take it!

Zippity Doo Dah...Zippity Ay...My Oh My It's...

STOP THE MUSIC!!!

Today is the polar opposite of a Zippity Do Dah Day.

Today is the first of many days of darkness. Today the heat is on. Today I sit in my flannel PJs and fuzzy slippers looking down the barrel of the gun known as "Winter in New England!"

We moved the clocks back last night. I personally want to slap anyone who claims to be happy about "having an extra hour of sleep."

a. 5 months of darkness is a big price to pay for 5 months of it getting dark at 4:30 in the afternoon
b. children do not realize that the clock has been adjusted and thus do not adjust their little bodies to sleep in

And so begins my months of hibernating in my studio and living vicariously through my scrapbook creations.

School Vacation Week...REALLY?

I love my job.

I honest to goodness, pinky promise it's true, absolutely, positively do love my job.

I am a teacher. I play and laugh and watch kids grow. It's fantastic.

There are many perks including July, and August. Do you want to travel to an uber-crowded theme park that is relatively close to the equator during the hottest time of the year? I don't.

I also get a few weeks off during the academic year. While I realize I have a schedule that any gainfully employed individual would be green with envy over, I can't help but wish that I had a wee bit of flexibility in when said vacation weeks occur. Like cattle, my family and I will follow the herd of teachers and families with school-aged children to the airport and through the gates of Walt Disney World during the prescribed school vacation week in April.

Airfare: $399.00 each way. Ding? There is no Ding that week! I imagine the airline executives ring their fingers together, twirl their villian moustaches and cackle with glee as they mark off backout periods for vacation week.

Hotels: Booked!

ADRs: How does dinner with a 3 year old at 10:40 p.m. sound?

Still, whining aside, we are blowing this popsicle stand (literally, it's a balmy 34 degrees as I type) and spending a week in the sun. I'll gladly take overpriced and crowded if it means I can do so in capris and flip flops!