Saturday, November 28, 2015

Family Reunion in Disneyworld







Back in October, Adam and I drove down to Orlando for a whirlwind, Family Reunion trip to Disneyworld. And it was a big one! There was our nieces-Cassie, Kayla, Kayla's Husband Andy, Cassie's best friend, our nephew Caden, and the parents who adopted him (that's a LONG story), Jason & Lori.

And yes, I love Disney, and yes it's my favorite place ever! But truly this trip was just about getting to see family. I actually haven't seen Caden in three years, and he was was 2 at the time, so he didn't remember us from the trip. And I was really feeling sad about that, and ready to see him now that he would remember us.

There are so many things I will remember from this trip. Our family matching shirts, spinning till we almost puked in the teacups with Caden, Kayla freakin out about almost every ride (especially the Tower of Terror), Cassie belting out every lyric at the Frozen Sing Along, and just all the laughs we had in general. 

I drank tea with Alice at 1900 Park Fair and got the best hug from Sully. Also Adam and I attended Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (another post on that later, it was EPIC). 

It was so worth the time and money spent to make these memories happen!



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Monday, November 23, 2015

Kayla & Andy's Wedding


A little over two months ago, my youngest niece got married to a wonderful man that we are so excited to join our family, Andrew. And yes it has taken me this long to blog about it because I wanted to get through my Disneyland posts first! I'm just a tad anal that way.

Two days after getting back from Disneyland, Adam and I loaded up the car and headed down to Texas. It was such a whirlwind weekend for us, but an amazing one. I really don't want to get into a play by play of everything that happened or really even talk about how beautiful it was (and believe me, it was beautiful).

I just want to say how proud we are to be the Aunt and Uncle of this beautiful woman. My family has been through so much tears and heartache, especially my nieces. And I have watched Kayla succeed despite it all. She has succeeded despite having parents that couldn't be there in the way she needed to them to be (or really be there at all). I've watched her struggled at times to find her way but yet always having a vision of the life she wanted. I love seeing that vision come true, and part of that is watching her choose a man who is there for her and is a wonderful match for her.

So here's to Kayla & Andrew. Many wishes for a wonderful life together!


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Thursday, November 19, 2015

Link is One!


Tuesday our precious little Linky turned 1! And we of course had to celebrate! When I woke up that morning, I was browsing my e-mail on my phone, when I saw the vet had sent Link a birthday e-mail, which I thought was so sweet.  He goes to doggie daycare up there every two weeks or so to play with his friends. He loves the other dogs, and the staff is always so good to him, and he loves them!

But the real party didn't start till I got home for the evening. I had bought Link some party hats, a first birthday candle, and two "pup" cakes I got from a local pet shop.  When I got home, I put the hat on Link, which he just seemed scared of it  HA. He is such a coward (so that is why he looks like he hates me in that picture).

His grandma came over to sing Happy Birthday to him, and we even lit the candle! He went crazy for his treats! He was such a happy camper, and then we took him on a birthday walk. 


Link has brought so much love to our household. He has such a fun and sweet personality.  And he is so spoiled, and likes to cry when he doesn't get his way (see video above). The first thing I do every morning when I get up for work is feed his highness. The other morning I dared to go to the bathroom first, and I could hear him whining a bit outside the door for his breakfast! And he acts like his heart is broken and cries at the window if I go out for a run/walk without him. 

Link is such a happy dog. He loves his vittles and treats. He loses his mind if you tell him he is going on a walk! He plays fetch, and we actually play hide n' seek with him. Adam will throw the ball and while he is going to get it, he will take off and hide.  Link loves the hunt, and is so proud of himself when he finds him.   He also likes surprising people with his loud howling, although he would never hurt a fly. He would be scared of a fly!

I'm so glad we have him in our home, it makes us feel like a little family. And yes we our those crazy dog people, but I wouldn't have it any other way. 


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Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Project Life 2015: Week 41 & 43

You may have noticed that I skipped a week. I didn't forget it, week 42 was the week we were in Disney. Instead of making a whole album devoted to that week, I decided to just incorporate it into my regular album. But it has taken a little longer to get together, as it is a few spreads for one week. So I wanted to go ahead and share other completed weeks. And I will come back to share my Disney week later!


I'll be honest, I'm not really in love with this spread. I'm not sure why. There wasn't much going on that week, and it all feels kind of random to me. And I really don't like my title card, but c'est la vie. They can't all be brilliant.


For this side, I documented little decorating touches in my craft room, receiving my Sallie from Nightmare Before Christmas Headband, and the super cheap gas prices! It's hard to tell but those white blurbs say, "Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday/Friday."


I like this side a little better. I included a special blurb about going to see the movie The Walk and sneaking Link to sleep in the bed with me while Adam was out of town. I get lonely! And the clash of the titans card is a print out of the "Story of the week" featuring me from our fantasy football league.



On the other hand, I really, really love week 43! I got to document my whole girls' weekend in Nashville. I also did an insert with my play bill.


Side 1 was the good food we ate and a few random shots I took. Not to mention my ticket to Cinderella! 


Side two was the picture from the play (as well as our cocktails and socks), and I had to document going to Jack in the Box afterwards.

Materials Used:

Project Life: September Skies Edition
Studio Calico: Wink Wink Kit



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Monday, November 16, 2015

The Weekend Report






We really had a nice weekend here at the Marten Manor. A few weekends ago, when my friends came up to see Cinderella, I reconnected with another college friend, Lark, after finding out she was living in my hometown! Lark and Adam have a lot in common (both avid video gamers), so we invited her over for a game night.  So there was gaming and pizza (we ordered from Pizza hut, and it came in this awesome Christmas box)! She ended up staying past midnight, it truly was the best! We reminisced about so many funny stories from our college days. 

Saturday was painting night with my mother at our local art studio. We hit up Sweet Frogs yogurt before the start of the class! Yum.  Then we painted holiday wine glasses, we both chose the Santa suits. I thought it ended up pretty cute. I'm hoping to use it in some type of Christmas center piece when we decorate for the holidays. 

Sunday, I did some Christmas shopping, and I did my first ever Jamberry manicure. I need a little practice, but I am loving how the wraps look! I am excited to try more. I also went for a ten mile run. I am trying to play catch up with my training due to some health problems I've been having holding me back!

And although Adam and I are seriously bummed that our Packers have lost three weeks in a row (but win or lose, we love them), I am dominating this fantasy season! I'm usually pretty middle of the road, so I'm enjoying the spoils of my winning streak for sure. Plus, I beat Adam for the first time ever this year. Booyah!




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Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Disneyland 2015: Digital Scrapbooking Pages Part 6

These pages cover my very last day in Disneyland. Read more about this day here.






Materials Used:



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Disneyland 2015 Trip Report: Part Six


I woke up on the last day in Disneyland ready to conquer everything I hadn't accomplished that was on my "to-do" list. My mother and I were in Disneyland for rope drop that morning, and we were so excited to see that they had put the Halloween decorations out the night before. They park was looking so lovely for Fall!


There are moments in Disney that are truly magical. One of the characters I wanted to meet this trip was Peter Pan. But I hadn't taken the time to track him down. Yet, I rounded a corner in Fantasy land and poof there he was. I was super excited! I was also thrilled to show him my Never land Galleons shirt. He liked it! 



I headed over to D.C.A after a quick morning in Disneyland to try out some rides I hadn't yet got to. First on the agenda was California Screamin'.  What a fun ride. It wasn't such a big thrill that it scared the pants off me, but it was just enough to get the blood going! 



I also rode Mike & Sully to the Rescue. I loved it, it is like a classic dark ride but modernized. I'm also a big fan on Monsters Inc. And I always laugh when I think of Mike Wozawski, as my niece has a BRIGHT, green car named Wozawski!



I spent a good deal of the afternoon re-riding rides in both Disneyland & California Adventure, grabbing lunch with mom, and packing to go home the next day. I think I may have even taken a nap, so I could close down the park later.

One of the big things on my agenda was to see the Cars lighting ceremony. If you have seen the movie, you will know what I'm talking about. They recreate that exact moment every night at sunset.


So when I hit the parks that evening, I hung out in Carsland, waiting for the event to start, and in the meantime, I hung out with Tow Mater. He was pretty darn cute I have to say.  Finally, the ceremony started, and I recorded a snippet of it. I loved it! Such a simple but perfect touch.


After one final ride on Radiator Springs' Racers, I headed back to Disneyland for the final few hours. I did nothing new, I just stuck with classic attractions like Dumbo. I also had to ride Winnie the Pooh because I never will forget riding it with Adam years ago, when he turned to me and asked, "Is this Pooh's descent into madness?" 
 
Right before the park closed, I jumped on Indiana Jones' Adventure. It was a perfect way to end the night. 
 
I'll be honest I was a little sad leaving the park, knowing the vacation was done. I even took the long walk back to the hotel, instead of hopping on the monorail, soaking up the last moments.
 
 
We got up the next morning at 3:30 a.m. to catch our flight (ugh). It was a long day spent in airports, but I was so happy to get home to my boys (who were both at the airport). Although Orlando is pretty easy to get to for us,  who knows when I'll be back out to California. But hopefully I made plenty of Disneyland memories to last me awhile!
 

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