Disney World Day 3!

Day 3 started out with our first character meal and greeting of the trip!  We went to O'hanas for breakfast.  This is a family favorite at the Polynesian for dinner, so we decided to try it out for breakfast.  The food was pretty yummy, but if we are being honest, most all breakfast food tastes the same!  I'm not an egg or meat person, so I always eat pancakes or waffles and that's it.. The first character to make it to the table was Pluto.  Burke loved him from a distance, but don't get too close! He was OK with touching his nose, but quickly got scared. I can't say I'm surprised, but by the end of the trip he did MUCH BETTER!!

After breakfast, we headed over to the Magic Kingdom.  This is by far my "happiest place on earth."  I know its corny, but when I walk in, I feel like a little kid all over again and am just so happy.  I know there are plenty of anti-Disney people out there who says its too commercial, etc, but I'll just leave it with.. YOU DON'T GET IT!!  Disney lovers understand me :)  Anyway,  I want my baby to enjoy the excitement too. I want him to walk in and feel live's worries, stresses, etc just go away while he's there.. And that is why he has already been twice in his 18 months! Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox now.. When we got there they still had Christmas decorations up.  It was actually kind of cool to see them (it's been years)!

Since Burke has become such a fan of Buzz, I definitely wanted to make sure he road it.  Also, Toontown is closing in mid-February, so we had to make it out there!  It's the area of Magic Kingdom with a playground, Mickey and Minnie's house and other "kiddie" stuff.  I hate to see it go, but I know they are building new stuff!

After a ride on Buzz, space mountain and some play time, we headed over to America for lunch.. We couldn't resist taking a pic.. And by the way Liberty Tree Tavern was our favorite lunch all week!

After lunch, we headed back to the room for nap time for the baby and much needed rest for the adults!  After resting, we went over to the Grand Floridian for dinner.  They have a character meal with Cinderella, the step mother, ugly stepsisters and Prince Charming.  The Ugly Stepsisters and Stepmother were AWESOME!  No lie.. They got in a "fight" and were rolling around the floor.. I wish I had the flip at that point! They were really funny and such good actors.  The stepmother even noticed our race shirts and made fun of us for not running fast enough.  She said "I saw you guys yesterday by the castle.. I told you to hurry it up.. You were way too slow.. I mean you didn't win did you?"  We died laughing... Prince Charming was my LEAST favorite character all week...  I made Brian take a pic with Cinderella :)

Burke loved the mac and cheese.. not the characters so much :)

After dinner, we headed to Magic Kingdom for fireworks and extra magic hours.  They were open til midnight, so after the fireworks we rode Dumbo, Pirates and some other  things.  After, Burke was getting tired and so Mom and Dad took him back to the room and we met up with Ashley and Chad and enjoyed some adult rides!  

It was a great day! 

Our Weekend!

This is the new cheeser face.. If you hold up the camera he says "cheese" and gives this goofy grin!

So for the first time in a VERY long time, we had a quiet weekend!  It was amazing.  Friday night I didn't even have to work, so we were able to have a family movie night.  We vowed to do it every other Friday (I work every other).  Being the first movie night, Burke got to choose with the help of daddy.  Burke loves Toy Story and daddy hadn't seen Toy Story 2, so that was the movie of the night.  The only problem is, now Burke knows Buzz plays on our TV so he wants it ALL the time!

Saturday we ran some errands, ate lunch at El Rods, then came home for naps.  Running errands, included a long time at Barnes and Noble so Burke could play on the train table.  He loves it, but definitely needs to work on his sharing skills.  He will not play on the table if other kids are.. Instead he'll walk away and look at books until they leave.  SPOILED! You would think he's not around kids all the time.. but I promise he is! Burke and I managed to both take a 3 hour nap!  Seriously, it was AMAZING :)  We had an early dinner, then I had to head in to work at 7pm.  Wasn't too bad, since I got the whole day at home with the family.  The only problem was getting home so late!

Today, we hung around the house all morning trying to figure out what to do.  We wanted to get out for a bit and do something fun with Burke, but we're trying to budget these days, so cheap or free is always good.  We ended up planning to meet Susan, Matt, Abbey and Natalie for lunch and a trip to the park.  It was A SUPER NICE DAY (60+ degrees), so it was so nice to be outside.  Burke loved it.  This is the first time we've been to the park and he's actually been able to run around from thing to thing.  He definitely wore me out!  But we had fun!

After our park adventures, Burke and I napped again.  It was pretty sweet.  For some reason, I have been so tired these past two days.. I'm hoping my body is just catching up to the crazy schedule!

We enjoyed a quiet evening at home with dinner and playing.  It was a great weekend!!  Hope you enjoyed yours too!

Disney World Day 1 and 2...

 We got to Disney World (the actual World and not airport) at about 10am Friday morning.  We checked-in to our hotel and headed out for a day of fun.  We were all really excited about seeing our place for the week.  Mom and Dad own DVC so we were staying at the Contemporary for the first time and in the all new Bay Lake Tower.. We were super excited to stay there anyway, AND M/D got a two bedroom suite, so B, B and I had one room and M/D had the other.  Kaitlin stayed on the pullout sofa.  It was really nice, with a full kitchen, family room, washer and dryer and anything else you need!  (the previous post has pics).  

The first thing we did was head to the Wide World of Sports where we were able to pick up Brian and my race packets and walk around and see all of the running stuff.  After that, we headed over to Epcot to meet up with Natalie.  Natalie was a former employee of mine and really good friend.  She worked for me at BCC for years before graduating and taking a job at Disney World.  I absolutely love her to death!  She is one of the sweetest and funniest people I know.  The Disney gig was a 6 month internship doing research at Animal Kingdom and Epcot.  Her last day of work was actually the day before we got there, but she was still able to give us a backstage tour ("magical moment" is Disney words :) ) of the Seas (know where the Nemo ride is?) and while we were there, we got to see the Dolphins up close and even got a little private show.. It was really neat, but it was AWESOME to see Natalie!!

After our visit with Natalie and time at Epcot, we headed back to the hotel for some rest before dinner.  Brian and I had to get up the next day for the half, so desperately needed some rest :)  We didn't really get much rest.. I think maybe Brian and my Dad napped while the rest of us explored the hotel.. We were supposed to head back to Epcot for dinner at Italy, so Brian and I could get pasta to carb load, but we were all tired and not really interested in going back to Epcot.  We ended up eating dinner at the Grand Floridian (B and I ate pasta), it was really good and close to the hotel.   After dinner, we all headed for bed,  it was an early morning and we knew the next day would be too!

The first half of day 2 was the half marathon that I already blogged about..  After the run, we headed to Hollywood Studios for lunch.  Brian's all time favorite place to get ribs (ANYWHERE) is at the Sci Fi Drive-in so that's what we had for lunch.  It's a fun restaurant, where you sit in cars and watch movies like you are at Drive-In Movie.  After a yummy lunch, we headed to Tower of Terror.  It's a favorite ride of ours!  We rode it a few times during the trip, but on this particular day, Al Roker and his family rode with us!  It was pretty cool.  You don't see famous people too often (or maybe we just don't notice them?) So that was a pretty cool experience.  After riding, we ended up heading back to the hotel.  Our new room was ready (we switched to have the Magic Kingdom view) and we definitely were looking for a rest!  

After some quiet time in the room, we met up with Ashley, Chad, and Natalie for dinner, while M/D and Kaitlin went to the Grand Floridian.  Ashley and Chad were on their honeymoon and happened to be at Disney the same time we were.. It was pretty awesome to be able to meet up (not in Blacksburg :) ).   It was nice to go out to dinner with friends and to my favorite, California Grille.  They have great sushi and yummy other stuff :)  It sits on top of the Contemporary hotel (top floor) and you can watch the Magic Kingdom fireworks from the roof.  They even pipe the music, so you can get the full effect!  After dinner, we headed over to Bay Lake Tower to watch the fireworks.  It was pretty neat!  This is the only picture I got of the night.

Our first two days were great!  But with the race behind us, I was ready to have fun and not stress!!!

Wordless Wednesday.. Welcome to Disney World

Disney World Half Marathon....

So I thought I would start our posts about Disney with our Half Marathon.... 

To talk about the half, you have to start 2 years ago when we went down to Disney World and the Disney Cruise.  It would have been August 2008 when we decided to plan a trip.  Summers can be so crazy that I need something to look forward to.. I decided to plan a trip for January.  It was down time for work and our passports would be here in time for a Cruise :)  When we finally booked, we found out a good friend of ours was going down too that weekend.. But to run the Disney Marathon.  She is a HUGE Disney lover like me!  No wonder we are such good friends!  I knew she was running, but had no idea when we planned it was the same weekend!  When I found out, she mentioned there was a 5k. So Brian and I decided to jump right in!  We didn't really train at all (had done 1 5k previously) and I found out I was pregnant (was 9 weeks preggers on the trip).  We ended up running anyway and really enjoyed it.. But felt like slackers the next two days as we watched people walking around in their "real" medals, after running 13.1 or 26.2 or BOTH races!  I decided if we ever went back during this same weekend, we should step it up!

So guess what happened?... In May, Mom and Dad bought into DVC (disney timeshare) and so a January trip was planned.  We were super excited and I quickly found out it was marathon weekend!  I told Brian if we were going, we would have to run and he agreed.. So in July we signed up for the half (don't know if I ever want to do a full :) )!  I knew we wouldn't seriously start training until September because of my schedule..

And that's exactly what happened.. We ran off and on until about mid October, then decided we really needed to step it up!  We got up to 5 miles, before it all came crashing down.. After our five mile run, we stopped training.. Most of you don't know, but on Thanksgiving day we had a miscarriage at 7 weeks.  We were pretty upset about it, and I pretty much stopped at that point.. Too many emotions to deal with and wasn't at all motivated.  Before the miscarriage, we had already decided we would likely have to walk/run it.  After, we still wanted to do it, I was just not really motivated.. The holidays were upon us in full force and the cold was here!  UGG!!  So... We ran a couple more times before the big day and that's it.. I was REALLY worried about being picked up by the vans and not getting our medal.. BUT I knew we could at least WALK a 16 minute mile!

So we got excited about the trip and packed and headed to Disney World!!  We got there on Friday and the race was Saturday.. We had to go over to Wide World of Sports to get race packets and that took FOREVER!  But it was a cool experience and this time we felt like real runners!

Saturday morning we had to be lined up by 5am (yikes!), that meant we had to be on the monorail by 4am (WHAT?), so we were planning on getting up at 3.. but thanks to Burke we didn't need an alarm clock because he got us up at 1am for the day (SERIOUSLY!).  It was such an early morning and I felt horrible for my Mom who had to get up with Burke :\

While we waited for the race to start they had various people talk. The best was a woman who was planning to run with her husband when he got deployed to Iraq.  Since he couldn't be there, he started a half marathon there!  They had the soldiers on the phone and it was sooo cool!  They were all running "with us" half way across the world!  And Disney was giving them all medals too.. But the best was when the little girl (probably 3 or 4) was telling her Daddy she loved him.. it was AMAZING (and yes I cried)!  It was also pretty cool (and I was surprised) that Meredith Viera, Al Rocker and Natalie Morales were all there and running too!  It was pretty neat.  Disney does it right.. celebrities, music and fireworks!

Our goal was to run through the Castle at Magic Kingdom which was a straight 6 miles.  I was a little worried, but knew we could do it.  At the start of the race, it was pretty amazing.  There were a million people, fireworks and characters cheering us on!  They had music all along the route and different characters and things to look at.  I'm not sure I could do a non-Disney one, after such a magical experience (have I mentioned I LOVE DISNEY!?) The one mile came pretty quickly.. then the 2 mile marker.. We made it all the way to the castle and to mile 7 before we walked!  I was soooooo proud of us!  I wish I had kept going, but I was starting to hurt and really didn't want to injure myself, so asked if we could walk for a bit.  It's hard to get back in the rhythm once you stop.. But we did... We only walked a few yards before we were going again and heading back to Epcot!  At mile 8, we took another breather then it got really hard to start again.  You think running the first 7 is awesome.. but you still have 6.1 to go!  We ended up walk/running the rest.. We ran all the way through Epcot and before a quick walk and ran across the finish line!  We made it in 3:04.10, which we were proud of!  We finished AND got our medals!!  It was such a great experience.  Although, I did quickly say, it may be a once in a lifetime experience... :)  The worst part about the whole thing, is the walk back to the monorail after the race.. You make it all that way, then they make you walk a half mile to the train.. I know it's good to walk, but trust me.. All you want to do is sit! 

Quickly after the race, we headed back to the hotel.  We were pretty hungry and tired and wanted to see Burke!  We made it back to the hotel long enough to shower and head to Hollywood Studios with the family.  We were really tired, but it was probably best to walk around!  I was sore, but not nearly as bad as I thought we would be!  And to top off a GREAT day.. We LOVE Tower of Terror at Hollywood Studios and ALWAYS ride it multiple times.. After the race, we went and Al Roker and his family were on the ride with us!  Don't ask why we didn't buy the picture! :)  So it's like we're famous now ;)

And don't worry.. We're already planning our next one ;)

More about our trip soon........

18 months old!

I know I'm 2 weeks late, but I think it's safe to say we have been a little busy!! So  he's really 18.5 months old now :)

Burke is 18 months old now!!  It's crazy to think he's so big.. Someone was asking me today if it's felt that long.. She said she felt like he was just born.  I agree!  Although, Brad said he feels like Burke has been around forever (not sure if that's a compliment or not?!).. My response:  "you're right in the sense, I can't remember life before Burke..."  And that is DEFINITELY a compliment!!  I LOVE my baby!!!!


At 18 months old:

- Burke is 21 lbs 7 oz (5th %...  FINALLY on the charts!!!) and 30.25 inches (5th%) and head is 19in (65% - he's got a big head! :) ) and wearing 12-18 months clothes and a size 3 diaper
- He does NOT like to be contained.. He wants to run around and be free.. Don't try carrying  him around anymore!
- His favorite foods are bread, cheese, ANY fruits (esp bananas and grapes), mashed potatoes and juice (when we let him have it!)- Loves using utensils to eat.. Especially a fork!
- He's added doggie, ball, book, Buzz (lightyear) and Ashley to his vocabulary from last month.. Ball, book and Buzz all sound very similar!  He's stopped calling me mama and calls me dada now... not sure why?  I've even heard him say Danielle...
- He LOVES his Thomas Train set... he always wants to play with them and likes his grille/kitchen too!
- He's not in daycare anymore.. I have mixed emotions about this.. Mostly because him and I miss our friends (teachers and little buddies).. But the new center just wasn't going to work for us :(  I am DEFINITELY excited to have him home with me all the time now!!
- Sleeps about 11-12 hours at night and takes a good 2-3 hour nap...

We love him more everyday!  He knows how to get what he wants (yes, he's spoiled rotten)!  He has us wrapped around his little finger, for sure!

SOON! I Promise!!

I will have a post soon, I promise!  We had a great visit with Mickey Mouse last week and Brian and I DID finish the half marathon.. But tomorrow I start teaching at Radford and am trying to get ready!!  I'll post about Disney soon, with pictures!!

2011 - Jump right in!

I wanted to blog more in 2011, but I'm not off to a great start.  We leave for Disney in 3 days and I'm a little to preoccupied and super excited!!  Brian and I are running/walking the half marathon and will hopefully finish in time :)  I'll try to get more posted before we leave, but the Hokies are playing tonight!

Top 10 in 2010!

So many things happened in 2010.. I don't even know where to start.. We had our ups and our downs, but are so thankful for all the ups!! The year started out with lots of snow and ended with snow too!!! We had some VERY hot days in the middle and a beautiful fall!  Brian hit the BIG 3-0 this year, my sister graduated from college and started Radford, and we took Burke on his first trip to Disney World! Here's the top 10 for the year! 

10. Brian turned the BIG 3-0!!

9. Brian and I committing to run a half marathon and getting into shape!  We did have a slip up, but we are in much better shape and will walk/run it next weekend! and I met my weight loss goals!

8. Burke finally started walking! Only took him 16 months, but he's running now!

7. Burke started and finished daycare!  HE LOVES IT! We do wish he could still go, but changes in ownership, etc means he won't be going much anymore :(

6. I took a job teaching at Radford (adjunct).. Yikes!

5. Burke's wedding debut for Ashley and Chad's wedding! The baby tuxedo was the cutest (imagine a tux in size 6-9 months!)!! And watching great friends finally tie the knot was pretty awesome!!

4. Brian and I's weekend getaway!  We spent the weekend in Williamsburg, while Burke stayed with Grandma and Grandpa (THANKS MOM AND DAD!)

3. Visits with family! We haven't traveled a ton, but it's been nice to see family over the year!

2. Brian "officially" finished his first semester of Graduate School! I'm so proud of him for finishing with FABULOUS grades and managing family and work!

1. Burke's first trip to Disney World!!  It was a GREAT family trip before the start of summer!