Luke 2:13-14 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
There is so much to love about Disney World- from the amazing sites (Cindy's castle is breathtaking no matter what time of day you see it!) to the characters (Mickey will always be my favorite!) to the amazing service you receive (the "cast members" are all so helpful & friendly!). But I wanted to narrow it down to the top things we enjoyed the most about our trip- not just the fun rides, awesome meals, and fun things to see- but the memory-making events that made our trip so very special. And lucky for you, we were able to narrow it down to six. So, let's get started.
One thing we had heard about going to DW at Christmas time was the amazing Christmas decorations- in fact, we watched a show on HGTV that showed how preparations for the Christmas season at Disney begins in May. Every park had an amazing Christmas tree. Each resort that we visited was completely decked out. So despite being in sunny Orlando, we were able to sorta feel like it was Christmas.
So in my Top 6 things we loved about WDW this year......(drum roll please).......the Holly Jolly, It's-beginning-to-look-a-lot-like-Christmas decorations.
The Christmas Tree at the Magic Kingdom
On the MK tree, there were these giant strands of popcorn, bigger than my son's head....
Adorable decorations at the Crystal Palace in the MK. All of this was made out of flowers.
Animal Kingdom's tree- all animals of course
The Wilderness Lodge's tree, where we stayed
The kids showing their true colors of the trip...no, they were perfect angels and got along beautifully (cough, cough)
The garland was made out of poinsettias on this tree at Epcot
The tree at The Grand Floridian - all Victorian
This is a life size Gingerbread house that has a store in the back to buy gingerbread shingles. The house was amazing.
These poinsettia balls took over 20 poinsettia plants to make!
A Gingerbread tree at the Contemporary Hotel. Can you see the "hidden Mickey" on it?
And one of my favorite trees...a monorail one!
One of the highlights of the trip was watching the Osborne Family Lights at Hollywood Studios. A family man out of Little Rock, Arkansas started putting up dancing lights each year that began to grow and grow, much to the annoyance of his neighbors. Disney took notice and asked if they could host the dancing lights at their parks. It was by far one of our favorite "shows" of the trip. Here's a clip:
On our trip to Disney, we had the coolest encounters with friends!!! When we first started planning this trip, my sweet bloggy friend, Shawn from Seriously who lives in FL, insisted we had to meet. And even though coordinating was a pain (especially for her- she had to drive over to the World!) and it was a rainy, chilly day, we were able to meet IRL - that's In Real Life!!! And it was so completely worth it. Shawn and I met last spring just through blogging and hit it off immediately. She is so down-to-earth and REAL in her postings and I have enjoyed getting to know her over the past 8 months or so.
Shawn was just as fun-loving and humble IRL as she is on her blog- I think we talked non-stop for 2 hours while we enjoyed a margarita (or 2). Funny thing, while we were there, ESPN was having their college football awards and we were on the lookout for Tim Tebow ( University of Florida QB) and Colt McCoy (UT QB). Unfortunately, they were too busy to hang out with us cool chicks that day.
the iPhone just didn't want to take a great picture that day- we are MUCH cuter IRL!
Being the wonderful Florida host & friend that she is, Shawn came bearing gifts for me & my family!!! She made this wonderful picture of my babies is going on my wall next to my bed. Isn't it "darling"?
And she brought yummy candy treats for the kiddos and a whole tin of freshly baked monster cookies- I had just commented on how yummy those sounded to her recently and she made me a whole batch!! It was a perfect treat to have in the room!
Shawn, you are just as wonderful in person as you are on your blog!! I enjoyed meeting you and love that we hit it off so well!! Thanks for making the effort to come over and meet!! And thanks for all the great goodies!!
Ironically, while we were there, one of Sissy's friends from her class at school and her Girl Scout troop was there with her family- so we met up at the Magic Kingdom and let them give each other a hug!
So fun that it really is a small world after all, isn't it?
Well, I have come out from under my pile of laundry and managed to cook dinner for the family tonight. So, I gave myself a few hours this evening to go through the pictures from the trip. And yes, there were over 500. I picked out a few of my favorites to share, as I was excited to show y'all how much fun we had. So, just a quick few to give you a taste. I'll be back later to tell you some of the fun stories we have from the trip. Pictures can't fully descibe all the excitement, but I think these do a nice job - just look at the sparkle in the kids' eyes, the post-ride enthusiasm, and the excitement of just being there. Enjoy.
(look who is riding in the front car.....that's my man!)
After a 12 hour trip that included a bus, a monorail, an airplane, and a 3 hour drive, we are finally home from The Happiest Place on Earth (most of the time). We had a fantastic trip - completely different from the previous trip when the kids were younger, but a great time together nonetheless. Sissy was mortified at the thought of taking a picture with the characters- she's too cool- but eventually warmed up to the idea. Brody was "all brave" with all the rides but then chickened out when it came to riding them again (Haunted Mansion? Come On!) We ate WAY too much food and walked WAY too many miles. Simply put? We exhausted ourselves!
I missed the baby terribly but he charmed my parents, Grandma, Aunt, and cousin so much, they didn't want to give him back. And he did wonderfully without me - he's such a good baby!
I am playing catch-up today - laundry, grocery shopping, oh and Christmas!!! Yikes! I have about 500 photos to sort through and I need to get my head on straight, but I will be back soon to tell you all about it!
I have been seeing a TON of adorable crafty Christmas stuff all over the internet this past week and it made me realize that I am just not that crafty of a person. And I'm ok with it. It looks much better if I just buy something that is really cute rather than attempt to make it myself. So, I will just ohhh and ahhh over all the pretty Christmas decorations I have seen online. And go on buying stuff to decorate my house with- Seriously, I'm ok with that.
In fact, these Texas Darlings do have something special we decorate with each Christmas. You could say it is my little obsession. You know, Matt has soccer- I have my Department 56 houses. It started about 12 years ago, when my mom gave me a few pieces. Ever since then, we have added a house (or 2 or 3) each year. I have many retired pieces and special additions pieces that are no longer available. At last count, we are up to 32 homes- yikes!!
I love taking taking the houses out each year and setting them up. Most of the time, we have little collections all over the house. And it becomes a pretty big deal as to where they all go and how to light them all, put them on timers, etc. (I leave that part up to Matt- hee hee!). This year, the kids wanted to help take them all out. As they are made of ceramic and our floor is tile, we had a few minor contusions, but nothing the super glue couldn't fix.
There is something so magical about putting up our houses- I can't explain it- it just is so Christmasy to me.
And when we light them up- ahhh- I just love it!! I feel like a kid again! And I just love the detail that goes into each of them. They are priceless to me. We got this set the year that Sis was born- so sweet! And my newest favorite! The star on top of the manger even lights up. You know it is Christmas when my houses are out. Just don't be around me on New Year Day- that's the day I have to pack them all up- and that, my friends is not fun.
I am a Momma of 3 amazing kiddos, married to an incredible man for 14 years, and a proud Christian who loves callin' Texas her home! We are happy, we are secure, we are busy...and we are blessed. We thank God for it all.
