Disneyland all Decked out

This is the castle covered in snow (lights) at night time, isn't it cool?

This is the entrance of California Adventure.

Hannah with the star of the place.

This is the outside of It's a Small World, how awesome is that?

A reindeer from the parade.

Mickey's girlfriend.

At the end of the fireworks show, it snowed all around the park... well, it bubbled. Hannah loved it!

Here are some pictures from our trip to Disneyland last weekend. I already gave the recap, so enjoy the pics.

Anthropologie Wish List

I am not the most romantic, shabby chic person (when it comes to style and clothes). I typically shop at Banana Republic (almost exclusively) and LOVE Pottery Barn, but I am drawn towards Anthropologie quite often. Mostly because of their home decor, but every now and then, I am wowed by their clothes and can actually see myself a bit romantic. Well, this last Anthropologie holiday catalog was full of stuff that I fell in love with. I had to make up a wish list... just too many goodies for the romantic at heart!

Oh, no.....

So, it has happened to me! You hear about it happening to everyone else, but think "No, that will never happen to me." And then it does. One of my hard drives has disappeared and I can't access it. Thank heavens it wasn't the one with all my photos and music, but it was the one with all my creative work (logos, touched up photos, christmas cards, YW lessons, projects). So, much stuff I need right now. Ugggh! I have a few tricks up my sleeve to see if I can't get the information back, but I have learned that valuable lesson... BACK UP!

I was reading somewhere yesterday that there is a universal truth in the computer world. As sure as death, your hard drive too will die at some point on you. It is inevitable. So, with that in mind... I would learn from my mistake and BACK UP! I am off to get myself a 500 GB hard drive, so this won't happen again.

Back Home Again

What a trip! It is hard to believe it was just a weekend. We arrived at Disneyland on Friday night and headed straight for the park and got a ton of things done. Such as Nemo's Voyage Adventure (for the first time), a lot of Fantasy Land and It's a Small World and of course Buzz Lightyear. It was a little chilly, but the crowds were minimal, so we had a blast enjoying a fairly empty park and fast lines.

Since, we stayed up so late, we slept in on Saturday and hit the park for lunch. We saw the Christmas Parade and then met up with Chris' brother and his date and had a blast with them. It rained for an hour (which didn't get rid of the crowds (in my opinion). Then it as cold from then on, but still we had so much fun.

Disneyland is a completely different park during the holidays with all new things to see. New parade, new fireworks show, new decorations, new castle and best of all a new "It's a small world" ride. They completely revamp the ride with everything christmas-y and they even sing Jingle Bells and "It's a small world" throughout the ride. It is beyond amazing, if you look at all the details. Hannah was a bit confused when she didn't hear the original song (since she had been waiting and waiting for the ride and singing the song all day, but luckily they sang it and all was well again). Really, it was so great and well worth the slightly cold weather.

Here are some cute Hannah moments during our trip.

1) Friday morning - Hannah comes into my room. "Mom, are we going to Disneyland today?" "Yes". A squeal of delight rings in my ears :-)

2) It is 11:30 pm and Chris and Hannah want to ride Buzz LightYear one more time. I say yes and as Hannah is walking through the line I hear "Thank you mommy! Thank you Angela"

3) As we are leaving the park, Hannah says "Goodnight Disneyland" and blows the park kisses.

4) We just got off of the Snow White ride (which is dark and scary) and Hannah says "that was scary. Pinocchio is scary too, but I will be brave."

5) We all are in line for the Matterhorn and Hannah remembers that this ride has a monster and she says "The monster will look at me." So, I ask, do you want to go? She says "yes". Brave again!

6) We went on Pirates of the Caribbean. Later that night I was singing "Yo-Ho, Yo-HO, A pirate's life for me". I hadn't realized how off tune I was, until Hannah repeats it completely in tune and correctly. Thank heavens she didn't get my musical talent.

7) During the original fireworks show, Tinkerbell flies over the castle. But during the holiday version, she doesn't make an appearance. Hannah with a pout on her face says "There is no Tinkerbell. It is too cold for Tinkerbell." That makes me sad." That is her favorite part of the fireworks show...she just loves it.

Disneyland itself is starting to get a little repetitive for me (just a little), but I have to admit, it never gets old to watch your child experience the magic. I almost cried a few times as I saw her face and body overcome with excitement. I loved watching her wave at all the character and yelled their names as they came down Main Street in the parade. And watching her mesmerized by the lights and decorations and song of "It's a Small World". And during the fireworks show, I found myself watching her face more than the fireworks. It really is one of the greatest experiences to behold as an adult... the joy a child experiences at this magical place!

Weekly Dinner Menu #5

I didn't do much cooking this week, relied heavily on leftovers, but here is what I did cook.

Sunday - Salmon Packets and a green beans. *
Monday - Pumpkin Ravioli Bake, Garlic Bread and Salad *****
Wednesday - Sloppy Joes and Sweet Potato Fries ***

The Merriest Place on Earth

Hannah woke up this morning asking "Are we going to Disneyland?" "yes" I said. And then a loud squeal of delight. So yep, we are going to Disneyland again. We are going for the weekend to see what Disneyland is like all dressed up for Christmas. Let's just hope the weather cooperates. I will post when I get back. Have a great weekend everyone!

Project: Pacing Myself

I have so many projects that I am working on right now, I have to stop and take a step back and not allow myself to have too many going. I need to finish a few before I can start anymore. Some of these projects are going to take a whole year to finish and some need to get finished by Christmas. So... as I talk to myself I say "slow down and pace yourself". Here are just a few of the ones I have going on.

The Photo Coast Project is one I did for Hannah and now I am doing one for Ella.

The Christmas Gift Project is just part of what I will be giving to friends this holiday season.

The Sand Project is so cool. My friend Misty has these little containers of sand all over her living room of all the places they have been. I love it! So, I am copying her and Martha Stewart (that is where she got the idea) and doing my own. I am working on sand and labels.. so more to come.

Thanksgiving Advent Calendar Project. I just talked about this one last month. I just wanted to show that I am indeed doing it and coming along. This one is going to take awhile.

And then there are a bunch I can't show, because it will give away the surprise on Christmas day.

The 411 on my Christmas

I don't usually do these "get to know me" exercises that pop up on blogs. Mostly because I don't think that anyone wants to read that much about me. But I gave into this one. I thought it would be fun to talk about Christmas and get it down for journaling purposes... so here you go!

1. Wrapping Paper or Gift Bags? Wrapping Paper. It's more fun that way.

2. Real or artificial tree? In our family we always had artificial, but my husbands family always did real. So, if he is willing to do all the hard work, who am I to complain! Eventually we will have both (a fake one for the kids tree and a real one for the main family tree).

3. When do you put up the tree? It varies every year because we are always out of town for Thanksgiving, but I would like to do it the weekend after thanksgiving, that sounds about right.

4. Do you like Eggnog? Not really, it isn't that good to me and definitely not worth the calories.

5. Favorite Gift received as a child? It has to be a Cabbage Patch Kid. I remember wanting it so bad and my mom standing in line for hours at Toys R' Us to get my sisters and I one. It was a great feeling to unwrap and see my little CPK!

6. Do you have a nativity Scene? Of course. My grandma Brimhall collected them from all around the world (170 total I think). I would like to do the same. I have some from her and then one from Denmark that I love. Now I just need a bigger house ;-)

7. Hardest person to buy for? Definitely my father... ughh, it is so hard to buy for him. But if you can afford it, anything from the Apple store is a good choice. (Hint... and for me too).

8. Easiest Person to buy for? Hannah for sure! Anything Disney related is always a winner.

9. Email or Mail cards? Definitely Mail. You don't get interested mail these days (mostly bills and garbage), so who wouldn't love a nice card in the mail. I look forward to it!

10. Favorite Christmas Movie? It's A wonderful Life. Not sure why, I just think of it when I think of Christmas movies and I like the message behind it.

11. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Usually within 3 weeks of Christmas. I buy a few things beforehand, but mostly I wait until the height of the shopping frenzy!

12. Favorite thing to eat during Christmas? Absolutely Peppermint Bark. Ghiradelli has the best one! Love it!

13. White lights or colored lights? Definitely White lights! my husband loves colored, but I love the look of white lights!

14. Favorite Christmas Song? By far "Oh Holy Night" but really anything by the MoTab!

15. Travel for Christmas or Stay home? Our family has been known to take a trip or two during the holidays, so I can do either one. I'm not going to pass up a trip to Tonga because its Christmas... Santa will find us there too.

16. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Yes, if I sing the beginning of Rudolph.

17. Angel or Star on top of the tree? Angel... I like Angels

18. Do you open presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? Growing up we could open one gift on Christmas eve, but now that I am an adult... I don't want to do that... that means one less on Christmas morning.

19. Most annoying thing about this time of year? The traffic... streets, parking lots, everything is more congested and just too much.

20. Up early or Sleep in? My family sleeps in. My parents have to wake us up. But Chris' family wakes up before the sun, so we will see what we end up doing.

21. Are you gifts signed by Santa or Mrs. Claus? Santa... the big man himself.

22. Do you tell the Christmas story. Of course, that is what this holiday is all about. You have to!

23. Do you leave cookies out for Santa. I never did as a child. not sure why. But I think I will do it with my kids.

24. Favorite Christmas Tradition. The day after Christmas, my mom and the girls would head out shopping for clothes. My mom got sick and tired of buying clothes we would return anyway. So, we made a day of it and an annual tradition. It was so much fun!

So there you go. A little bit about me!

Thanksgiving Zoo Trip

One of our favorite places to go while visiting Louisville is their zoo. It is a great zoo and a must visit. So, when we were given a 70 degree day, we decided to hit the zoo. Here are some snapshots of the trip. Of course, we had to go on the carousel (which we do each trip). Hannah used to not sit on the animals at all, then with help and now she does it all by herself). And the kids love the little train ride around the zoo... that is a must do also. The zoo also has great statues all over the park and Hannah finally wanted to climb on them and let me get her picture on them... such progress (at least for me anyway).

It's Peppermint Season

I love peppermint, the colors of white and red together and anything crunchy... so needless to say if a recipe calls for candy canes... it is a winner in my book. So, I collected a bunch of great peppermint desserts that I am just dying to try. Hopefully by the time Christmas rolls around, I will have made each one, but we will see :-)

Chocolate-Peppermint Candy Cupcakes
Crushed-Peppermint Cheesecake
Peppermint Bark
Peppermint Brownie Tarts
Candy Cane Cake

School Portfolio Project

While the sisters and sister-in-law were all together over Thanksgiving we tackled a great project. We created these adorable school portfolio books for our children. Inside are 14 envelopes (one for each school year including 2 years of preschool). These envelopes will store class pictures, grades, projects and really anything we want to preserve each school year. As you can see, I made four books -- making a best guess at the number of kids we will have. And Hannah's is completely finished and is already storing her recent school pictures and her report card. I am in love with the way these books turned out!

Weekly Dinner Menu #4

After a break from cooking, I am back with this week's Grub Report. Here is what I made this week. My sister requested that I include a rating system with each recipe. My elaborate rating system will be out of 5 stars. Enjoy!

Monday - Chicken Pot Pie I used rotisserie chicken to cut the time in half. ****
Wednesday - Baked French Toast with Raspberry Sauce, scrambled eggs and Canadian bacon. ****
Thursday - Frikadellers with gravy, potatoes and broccoli. ****
Saturday - I am taking Praline Yams and a ham to our ward/church Christmas Party.

She is so funny to me!

I have to write down the funny sayings Hannah has said. These are a little old, but I still need to preserve them, so here you go.

We were at soccer practice and Hannah came off the field to see her dad. We told her to go back out and play and she says "I think I am just going to stay and relax".

I ask Hannah a question the other day and she answered me "Mom, I've told you a million times". Chris said "I wondering where she got that phrase from"... knowing full well it came from me.

Hannah wanted to take some of her halloween candy to her friends at soccer. After practice she handed it all out to the kids making sure everyone had a piece of candy... including the little siblings and the parents and coaches. And then she came home and held up a piece and said "I am going to give this one to Evan" (her friend from preschool).

Hannah was playing with Chris and he held up a picture of a cat and Hannah said "I like cats, even though the man comes and takes them away in the trap". A little explanation. We had 9 feral cats living in our backyard (a mom had 3 litters in our yard and they just decided to stay), so we had to catch them and everyday for 2 weeks animal control would come and take them away.

During Thanksgiving dinner we went around the table and said what we were thankful for. When it was Hannah's turn she said "the Buzzlight Year ride and the Winnie-the-Pooh ride at Disneyland".

The other day she was talking to Ella and said "Ella you have two choices... you can...." Guess who says that to Hannah all the time?

More Thanksgiving Fun

Here are some snapshots from our day trip to the Newport Aquarium, just outside of Cincinnati. We packed up all the kids in the mission transfer van (a big van) and headed about 2 hours out of Louisville to this very nice, kid friendly aquarium. The highlight of the trip was feeding the birds nectar, the very large octopus, watching the the last 10 minutes of the Little Mermaid, the sharks and the jellyfish.

It was a really fun day trip with the cousins, moms and grandma!

Sometimes I Feel Whimsical

While visited Copenhagen, Denmark during Christmas a few years ago, I became familiar with Department 56. Then while at Disneyland last year, I found it yet again (well, in Downtown Disney). I am in love with this store. It carries some of the cutest decor items... especially for the holidays. The latest one I have found are these adorable and yes, whimsical stockings for the holidays. I mean how fun (and crazy) are these! I love them.