Disney...Take Three!

We are back from our trip to Disney!! We have been going with my parents for the past three years in January and always have a great time! Each year is a little different as Jimmy gets older and I imagine if we continue to go over the years it will change even more as Cecilia gets older. Here are some highlights from our trip:

We stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge. We got a deal on the room (they were 45% off for deluxe resorts) and we had never stayed there before so thought this would be a real treat. The resort borders the Animal Kingdom park and some of the rooms have views of the savanna. We did not book a savanna view (more expensive) but Jimmy asked for a free upgrade when we checked in we were able to get a "partial" savanna view-which was fine with us! We got to see lots of animals including the giraffes! Our room connected with my parents and our room had bunk beds which Jimmy loved! One funny (at least now) story about the hotel was on the first day we had the sliding glass doors open to look out at the animals and then Jimmy closed the door but didn't put the curtain across and Jimmy came running from my parents room wanting to go back outside and ran right into the door! Then he did the same thing again in my parents room the next day.





The first night we went to eat at the T-Rex Cafe, a dinosaur themed restaurant in Downtown Disney. I thought this would be great since Jimmy likes dinosaurs but we soon learned after we sat down there was a meteor shower every 20 minutes and the dinosaurs "came to life." Little Jimmy did not like it and needless to say we were watching the clocks so that we could scoot out in time to beat the next shower.



Ice cream made him feel better


On Thursday we went to Hollywood Studios. Little Jimmy once again loved seeing all of the characters, parades and most rides/attractions that were outside. Dark rooms and loud noises are not his favorite. I think the highlight for little JImmy was meeting Woody and Buzz Lightyear. It wasn't very crowded at the park; we walked right onto one of the thrill rides, Tower of Terror-sans little Jimmy of course. Thursday night we ate at the hotel at the restaurant Boma. It was very yummy and had some African-inspired food.







Got a little wet at the "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" playground.


Friday we headed to the Magic Kingdom. We tried some new rides this time like the cars, which Jimmy loved and the Barnstormer Roller Coaster which he also loved. He loved it so much we rode it twice! We met lots of characters including Mickey, Minnie, Pinocchio, Goofy and Buzz and Woody again. Jimmy fell asleep right before the parade so he missed it. We were so sad because all of his favorite characters were in the parade but we hated to wake him up because he really was exhausted and we had dinner reservations that evening. For dinner we did Chef Mickey's again. We ate there last year as well and it was definitely a highlight this year.







Cecilia did great on this trip and was such a great trooper! My parents would hang out with her some while we would do rides/shows with little Jimmy







My post from last year's trip is here.

In case anyone is wondering where I got the applique shirts for Jimmy and Cecilia I wanted to let you know that my friend Maria with My Moxie Designs makes them. You can send her a shirt and she will do the applique and monogram/name. I love "special occasion" shirts. I had her do one for Jimmy's birthday and plan to have one done for St. Patrick's Day. They are unique and a lot less expensive they buying something out of a catalog. I saw a St. Patty's day shirt in the Chasing Fireflies catalog it it was almost $40!! I like using Garanimals from Wal-Mart or Lands Ends shirts. Just buy a size up. Let me know if anyone wants her info!

Sweet Cecilia's Baptism

This morning Cecilia was baptized. It was a great morning! She did great and didn't cry until it was all over and then we took her to the nursery. She wore my dad's christening gown that was made by his cousin. It is beautiful and the same one that Jimmy wore when he was baptized. We went out to brunch after church at Soho South Cafe with our parents and Ginny, Marty and Amelia. It was a great day!



The necklace I am wearing is a gift from my friend and fellow blogger, Molly. I love it!! She makes beautiful custom jewelry. It was something pink for mommy and I am so glad that it arrived on Friday so that I could wear it today.


This pic is with our associate pastor Dr. Parr. So funny his name is Parr, too! I had never met another Parr (besides relatives) until him.

I also wanted to post a couple of pics from Jimmy's baptism in March of 2007:

With Dr. Parr

As seen on TV

This was one of my Christmas presents: The Perfect Brownie Pan Set. I saw it on tv and thought it was kind of cool since I always love the crunchy ends on brownies. I always like to add an extra egg for "cake like" brownies. I tried it last night and thought it worked out just like it did on tv!




It looks wet b/c I already sprayed it with Pam before I took the picture

Throwback Week

Apparently, this week was "throwback week" on Facebook and you were supposed to post a profile pic of yourself from when you were younger. Who really knows. Someone may have started it months ago and it is just now making it around to me. I only saw a few people post a "throwback" photo but it did get me to thinking about scanning in some old pictures I have of me as a child. I only have a few here and I asked my dad to get down a couple of photo albums so I am going to gradually start trying to scan in old photos. Here are a few I found of me and then one of Jimmy:


I am loving my brother's plaid shorts with rainbow belt AND white socks and shoes. Classic. I think I look pretty cute. I remember that terry cloth outfit.


My grandpa helped me plant a garden and I am showing off a radish that I grew. I only remember that one radish. Not sure if my garden was all that successful.


We always had to get our picture taken in front of this tree.


In the 2nd grade I wanted to be a nun for Halloween. I had to write a story about it and I wrote that I wanted to be a "none" for Halloween.


I guess my mom wanted to get one more year out of the Polly Flinders dress. I think it was just a tad bit short. Notice, another tree picture.

Dad's Day at School

Yesterday was Dad's Day at School. Jimmy took little Jimmy to school and they made a bird feeder (which was made of fruit loops and lil Jim decided to eat it rather than give it to the birds), took some pictures, ate a snack, and had a pretend snowball fight!

What is for supper?

UPDATE 1/21/10:
I finally made this for dinner on Sunday and I thought it was good! Definitely in the rotation. Had enough for leftovers and paired it with some long grain wild rice-the kind that comes in a bag and takes only 90 seconds. Perfect leftover dinner!

UPDATE: I lied. I didn't end up making this for dinner. We ended up going over to Ginny and Marty's for dinner. I should probably post dinner recipes after I make them! This will likely be on the menu for Sunday.


I am on a blogging roll these past couple of days. This is what I am making tonight. It was in this month's issue of Southern Living. Instead of frozen mashed sweet potatoes I am going to use the microwavable whole sweet potato since I already have them and don't want to run to the store.

Chicken Dijon

Hands-on Time: 25 min.; Total Time: 45 min. Easy side: Prepare frozen mashed sweet potatoes according to package directions. Stir in chopped fresh sage, butter, and salt and pepper to taste.

Yield: Makes 6 servings
Ingredients
6 skinned and boned chicken breasts (about 2 lb.)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 tablespoons butter
1 medium-size red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 medium-size sweet onion, diced
1 (14 1/2-oz.) can chicken broth
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Preparation
1. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper.

2. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add chicken, and cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Remove chicken from skillet; add bell pepper and onion, and cook, stirring often, 4 to 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Return chicken to skillet.

3. Whisk together broth and next 2 ingredients, and pour over chicken. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 20 minutes or until chicken is done.

Photo credit: Southern Living

Haiti

Photo Source: Associated Press


My heart is so heavy for the people of Haiti. I am sure that the pictures we are seeing don't even do the devastation justice. My family and I went to Haiti for a vacation many years ago, when I was 7 or 8. The poverty of the country left a lasting impression on me. While this stop on our cruise was to visit the beautiful beaches of the Caribbean, all I can recall are the Haitian children begging for money and their truly primitive living conditions. While my visit was many years ago and they were under the rule of dictator "Papa Doc" and possibly some things have changed in 20 years, I can only imagine how this catastrophic event has affected the lives of those who live in Haiti. I am encouraged by the many people and countries that are helping them.

Christmas card

Most of you may have gotten this in the mail, but here is our Christmas card from this year. The pictures and card were designed by the amazingly talented Chrissy Hall of Christine Hall Photography. I go tomorrow to pick out the images I want from the shoot. It is going to be so hard to pick and I am going to be so broke!

Front:


Inside Birth announcement


Inside:


Back:

Cecilia-3 months!

Cecilia is three months old! She is getting so big. She has graduated to size 2 diapers and 3-6 month clothes. She is still sleeping in the bassinet in our room and her sleeping patterns change but the last couple of nights she has slept for 5 hours! She is super smiley and for the most part a laid back baby. Her big brother still loves her and loves to give her hugs and kisses. He also likes to inform us when she is crying. She has started using her baby swing some. Jimmy likes to cover her up with his Meek (his blanket...I plan to do a post on Meek soon) and he thinks it would be fun for Woody, Buzz and Dinosaur to swing with baby sister too.

Here are some pics of Jimmy at 3 months and Cecilia at three months. Do you think they look alike?

Cecilia:




Jimmy:




Jimmy just chillaxin

A little of this...a little of that...

My first week back to work went well. We were really busy so it went by really fast! It will take a little bit to get the routine down but all in all it went well.

My mom ended up in the hospital early Friday morning. The severe pain in her abdomen ended up being a very large kidney stone. She was supposed to go home yesterday but she also had a blood infection so needed to stay two more nights to get some heavy duty antibiotics. She should go home tomorrow. She has had a rough six months!

With my mom out that leaves some creative child care on our part. With this only being my second week back to work I am not really able to take time off so Jimmy will be playing Mr. Mom Monday and Tuesday with the help of Eliza and Ginny. I am SO THANKFUL to have friends and family close by to help out and they are always so willing.

It is COLD in Savannah! The lows have been consistently in the 20's the past week. My hydrangea leaves are black but luckily they will come back in the spring. Some ferns that I was nursing back to life after last winter's freeze are history. I am trying to keep my topiaries on the front porch alive but they are getting a little dried out from being inside in the heat. I might be fighting a losing battle. We are dripping our faucets outside so they won't freeze. Savannah/Chatham County ALMOST cancelled school for the PREDICTION of snow/ice on Friday. Ha! So funny coming from Virginia. I am sure that the county does not have ANY equipment (plows, salt, etc) to deal with ice/snow. They ended up not canceling/delaying school and we just got a little bit of rain. The last time it snowed in Savannah was Christmas day 1985.

Tomorrow is my first day of school! Back to class at Georgia Southern for my master's degree. I am taking a class about Higher Education Law and looking forward to it.

Cecilia will be 3 months on the 12th so will be posting pics in the next couple of days!

Back to Life, Back to Reality...

Yesterday was my first day back to work. I just jumped right back in and we were pretty busy with the first day of add/drop for the winter quarter. Crazy how it feels like I never left. Seems like the days get longer but the months and years are shorter. I was sad on Sunday that my maternity leave had come to an end, but then excited to see my friends and co-workers again and get back into a routine.

New Year, New Art!

Pink Poppies: A Prayer

When Jimmy was born we bought a piece of art to mark his birth with the idea that it would someday be his. We did the same with Cecilia and purchased this piece from Savannah artist and SCAD graduate, Tiffani Taylor and someday it will be hers as well.

Happy New Year!

We rang in the new year (well, until 1030, at least) at dinner with Jimmy's sister Ginny and her husband Marty along with a wonderful friend, Blaine with dinner at Il Pasticcio. It was YUM!! I had the apricot scored flounder with lobster mac and cheese which was divine. We had some great wine from Buehler Vineyards in Napa. Grand Marnier white chocolate cheesecake for dessert (we split) and coffee. I know, I am an old lady and love coffee with my dessert :).

Today we had a late lunch at Jimmy's parents and had our greens (for money) and black eyed peas (for luck). Hope this is a great 2010!

I am back to work on Monday. I have really enjoyed being home this past three months but there comes a time when you have to go back to work! Or at least I do. Luckily, I am still only going to be part time and my parents are up for keeping both kiddos so I think the transition back to work will go well.

As for resolutions...none here. At dinner we did go around the table and talk about the good things that happened in 2009 and what we are looking forward to in the new year. We are so thankful that Ginny and Marty and Amelia moved to Savannah in September. We are so fortunate to have so much family close by. Both Jimmy and I are going to try to appreciate more and want less. We have more than we need. We might not have the biggest house, a fancy car (though the Odyssey is a pretty hip minivan!), or hip clothes but we have our health and our family and we hope we can remember that when the wants get the best of us.

Our new toy!

for cruising around Isle of Hope