January Trip Pictures

After having a real life "McAlister" moment at the airport, we were so thankful that we made our flight. Then we went from plane to Magical Express. 

This was Matt's first time seeing us on the "welcome" video that plays on the Magical Express. Back in 2008, before Toy Story Midway Mania opened, we were lucky enough to be a part of the promotional video filming. It was such a fun experience for us to ride a new attraction before any other guests!

Our first stop was Animal Kingdom. Some of the Christmas decorations were still up.

In case you didn't know, my favorite animal is buffalo.

This was from dinner at La Hacienda de San Angel in Epcot. 

This was the very first car we created at the new Test Track.

My first time meeting Ariel! I was obsessed with her when I was 4 years old.

I really should have bought this beer hat. 

I was surprised to find a buffalo stuffed animal in Canada! I named him Ontario because the Cast Member that sold him to me was from Ontario.

Our first time eating at Be Our Guest was amazing!

As you can see, we were very proud of ourselves for running our first 5K. That was definitely the highlight of the trip for both of us. 

September Solo Trip Pictures

Select photos from my September solo trip to Disney World.

My room at All-Star Music. The walk was pretty lengthy but I insisted on being in the Broadway section. 

Back at All-Star-Music 

Confession: I love taking photos of people I don't know on Expedition Everest. You never know what you're going to get. 

 The human yeti and the scared little kid steal the show.

I absolutely LOVE Enchanted Tales with Belle. Watching guests interact with Belle is really a special experience. On top of that, Imagineering really pulled of some cool tricks with this one.

The last thing I did before leaving Orlando was meet up with friends, Gaby and Ric, along with their kids. We checked out Enchanted Tales with Belle together. It was so fun watching two of their kids perform in the "show." 

Nice To See You Again, Friend!

I think it goes without saying that it has been well over a year since I last updated this blog of mine. After having a few chats with my husband and some friends, I decided that it is high time I get back on this horse that I call "Disney rambling."

To get you all up to speed on my Disney World vacation life, I will recap (very quickly) my last few Disney World trips. I embarked on a second solo trip last September. My husband and I trained for our first 5K and took part in the very fun 5K through Epcot during Marathon Weekend in January. That trip was the first trip in a long time where it was just my husband and I. It was a really really REALLY wonderful. End recap.

Next month, my Disney-loving mom, Nancy, will be my traveling companion as we set out to eat everything in sight during the International Food and Wine Festival. While food is all well and nice, I am actually most excited about seeing The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights at Disney's Hollywood Studios for the VERY FIRST TIME! I have always wanted to see the Streets of America all lit up and beautiful. I cannot believe that it's only a month away!

Fast forward in time four months and I will be enjoying Disney World again with my husband and our best friends, Barbara and Ben. As you might recall, my husband and I wrangled them into a Disney trip with us a few years ago and we had an absolute blast! We are going to celebrate Matt's 30th birthday in Disney World and we could not be more excited. I know Matt's a little nervous about turning 30 and I really think that getting in touch with his inner child is going to be perfect for him. Granted, he acts like a big kid 99% of the time anyway, but still. :)

Fast forward later into 2014 and at a currently unknown date... we are off to..... DISNEYLAND! This is honestly all thanks to Southwest Airlines and their killer credit card sign-up bonuses. We are getting the Companion Pass soon, which means that I will fly free wherever Matt goes. We can use Rapid Rewards points to book Matt's flight, then I just tag along without having to pay for my ticket. This will not only be my first trip to Disneyland, but my first trip to California. Actually, it's going to be my first trip out west! I have NO idea what to expect, but I am so excited to plan a Disney trip from scratch. I really have very little knowledge of Disneyland. Time to get researchin'!

Be prepared for a very long upcoming post with TONS of pictures of my past few trips. I think you will enjoy seeing all of my Disney World fun. :)

9 Days of Work!

That's it!  Just nine more days of work and trust me, it cannot be over fast enough.  I'm anxious as heck to get outta Michigan for a long weekend. Work seems to be more and more of a serious ache an pain in my bones and in my mind.  It's like an infection that brings me down with every passing day.  Luckily, I have more things to look forward to than just Disney that will help take my mind off of my day to day job and boring surroundings.

While the plans for my upcoming Disney trip hasn't become much more laid out, I'm really excited and looking forward to it.  If there's something interesting that's going on before I leave (related to my trip) then I'll make sure I update you.

My husband and I have decided to do a Couch to 5K program with each other.  Matt's really fit now.  While he doesn't do regular cardio, he lifts 2 or 3 times a week.  I'm not so motivated.  Haha!  A few years ago I got into running and actually started to feel good about going out and working out.  Then, the cold came and I just stopped cold turkey.  The program is really smart because you start off small and then work your way up to more jogging and less walking.  Matt will DEFINITELY push me and I think having me next to him will challenge him as well.  My goal is to lose weight and get in a regular routine of running.  Matt's goal is to just see how fast he can run a mile at the end of the program.  He doesn't have any intention to take up running.  I, on the other hand, would really like to enter my first 5K and finish it.  While I've never been overweight, I've always struggled with my endurance.  Fact: Skinny girls can be out of shape too.

Matt and I are starting the program tomorrow (Monday) and will continue on Wednesday and then again Friday morning or Saturday afternoon.  Not sure.  That being said, I'll be... drumroll please... running on my own the following Friday at Disney World!  Gonna have to test out the All-Star Resorts jogging trail for myself.

Okay, that's all of my info for now!  Check ya laterrr! (Dazed and Confused reference)

I'm Almost There, Florida!

I feel really lucky to be going to Disney World again in less than three weeks.  It's my happy place.  It's where I ALWAYS want to be.  Just fifteen more work days and I'll be back there.

When I'm at Disney World, I have a specific thought often that I don't think I have EVER talked about publicly before in my blog writing.  Right now, I'm watching a Disney Parks show on Netflix and it made me think of it again.  There are times that I'm absolutely amazed at my surroundings and the first thing that comes into my mind are the Imagineers.  It takes just seconds for me to imagine all of the people that put time, brain power, body power, creativity, imagination, and endless research into something SO simple yet so complex.

For example, the pavement in between the Fountain of Nations and Spaceship Earth.  If you're a person who pays attention to detail, you probably already know what I'm talking about.  At night, the ground is illuminated with what looks like tiny Christmas tree lights.  It's a detail I remember from my first trip to Epcot when I was just 9 years old.  I'm sure it didn't take just one person to create this "finishing touch." Someone had to think of the idea.  Someone had to figure out how it was going to look with the overall theme.  Someone had to come up with HOW this was going to work mechanically and survive the elements.  Then, someone okays the budget on this tiny magical detail.  All of this work was put into something that isn't even an attraction.  It's simply "plussing" the ground with detail.  It's the things that no one needed to do, but they did so that way the guests could feel that much more immersed in the Disney magic.  THAT is what makes me see how different Disney is from other theme parks.  Details like that seriously bring me to tears and I'm so thankful to be there in that moment.

I appreciate so many things about the parks and I think that's why I'm able to go back so often and have it feel new every time.  It seems that there is something new to be discovered with every visit.  There's just never enough time in my book.

Wanna know some details about my upcoming trip?  Alright, so, it's starting to unfold a little bit more since my departure day is getting closer.  However, there's still no real itinerary due to the unknown of who I'm going to see and when.  Thursday, my arrival day, I know I have to pop over to Magic Kingdom at some point to meet up with a family member of a "family member."  It's my lifelong honorary big brother's older sister, Jennifer.  She's a big Disney fan and will be visiting WDW with her family at the same time I will be.  The next day is the Touring Plan's meet in Morocco.  I'm sure I'll be hanging with Touring Plan's folks for most of Friday.  Saturday, my free day with no plans to see anyone.  If I do, cool.  If not, no biggie!  On my last day, Sunday, I'll end at Magic Kingdom so I can visit with the Robbins family.  They're awesome people that I met through my love of Kelly Clarkson.  Ric was a band member of Kelly's for about three years.  Being friends on Facebook, he saw my love for Disney and connected me with his gorgeous wife, Gaby.  Throw in their three kids and you've got a huge Disney loving family.  My kind of people!

I have a feeling that this trip is going to feel really short and go by really quickly.  I wish I had an abundance of vacation days to use so I could stay a few days longer.  However, I only have 4 1/2 days left for the rest of the year and I have to use them wisely.

Be sure to follow me on Twitter, @Stacey87, if you don't already so you can watch me tour WDW in a few weeks!