Rain, Rain Go Away

Well, actually, it's not rain that I want to go away. It's a hurricane!!! There's another pesky one churning and heading for the Gulf. And I want it to go away! Brian and I have been keeping a wary eye on the weather reports and now we're worried about our chosen anniversary trip location. Since it's on an island off Mobile and has had more than its fair share of hurricanes, we're a little nervous. Luckily, we haven't put any money down on it yet so we aren't out any money if this place is damaged or blown away. But that also puts it at risk for someone else reserving it! And then we're back to square one of looking for a nice place to stay. So please join us in praying that this hurricane (and all others following behind it over the next couple months) will just go away!!!

Pick-Me-Ups After A Vacation Let-Down

Well, Disney is done and now we're settling into our daily grind and routine. It's weird coming home and not having anything left to plan for or get excited over! I bought surprises and packed my bags months before vacation and now I'm just left with suitcases full of dirty laundry and brochures and pictures from all the days of fun. How sad. I guess this is what they call the post-vacation blues. (Well, I'm not sure anyone actually calls it that. I may have just invented it myself!!)

So, to avoid the dreariness of returning to my real life, I've found two ways to find some more excitement and joy in my life. One, I've made the monumental decision to put together a Disney scrapbook. I've never been a scrapbooking person. Not only does it require a lot of free time that I never have, but it also requires some creativity that I think God forgot to bless me with. Everything I try to get creative with always ends up looking like an elementary-school project that someone rushed through the night before it was due (not something I've ever done, of course!). But, after being so Disney-obsessed, it's kind of a let-down not to have Disney in my life anymore. So that's how I came up with the idea to get brave and dig up some minuscule creativity I'm sure is deeply buried down in me somewhere and try to put together a Disney scrapbook. I'm going to go through the 300 pictures we have, buy some scrapbooking stuff and create this book of memories. And, of course, it will probably take me 10 years to complete but that will be OK since I'm sure it'll be another 10 years before we get to go again!! :-)

My other avenue of creating excitement is to plan our 10-year wedding anniversary trip. It's our second honeymoon! We have located our beach condo in Dauphin Island, AL and have found the funds to cover the expense. So now I get to do lots of planning and making packing lists to prepare for this trip to the beach! In a way, I'm even more excited about this trip! (Well, kind of. It still doesn't have the Disney magic.) My favorite part of planning for this vacation so far? Making my list of what Brian and I can do during our four kid-free days. And we plan on doing everything we haven't been able to do in the past almost-8 years! We're going to sleep in late! We're going to antique stores! We're going to play games that require small pieces (YEAH MONOPOLY!!!)! We're going to watch movies with bad language and adult situations! (OK - I'm not talking trash here people, so you can wipe the concerned look off your face Mom. I'm just talking the R-rated decent movies that we enjoy but can't watch with kids around because it has a little too much language or a scene or two I'm not comfortable letting the kids watch.) Anyone have any other (clean) suggestions for us to add to our list?

Disney Mania!

We're finally home from Disney. Actually, we've been home for a few days now but we've both been too exhausted to get on the blog and update it until tonight.

The trip was wonderful and I've included some pictures below. We managed to take over 300 of them!!! I'll spare you from the majority but thought I'd share some of our favorites. Even though we had a nervous 7 year old and a fidgety 2 year old, we all managed to love our trip and even the several days we had alone as a family. Even though I absolutely adore "the rest" of my family, it was so nice to have a few days where it was just the four of us. I don't think we've ever done that before and it really made for some sweet memories.

Way Too Excited!

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh. I am SOOOOO ready to go. I'm so excited that I'm shaking. How silly is that? I feel like a little kid myself getting ready to visit the most exciting place in the world!

Oh a side note, one reason for my excitement honestly is because of what today is. Would you believe that 10 years ago today, my sweet hubby and I were walking down the aisle together? He told his mom this morning that I deserved a medal for putting up with him so long. I personally think he should get a medal, trophy and one of those HUGE grand prize checks that people get on TV and you wonder how in the world they're going to get it to the bank to cash it (and would a bank really take one of those?) for putting up with me so long!!!

So, to my sweet and very precious husband who I don't tell nearly enough that I love him dearly (and who will probably not read this blog before the end of the vacation),
"HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, HONEY!"