Red Door Church

I spotted this quaint little church while we were in Gatlinburg.

Love red-door churches!

If You Wanted It, You Could've Just Asked!

Every week, I take a few bottles of water to put in the community fridge at school. I clearly label them with my name, so they don't get mixed up with someone else's bottles. I have to do this because our school superintendent deemed it financially excessive for each teacher to have their own fridges and microwaves in their classrooms. We were told a few weeks ago to turn them off and make sure they were out of our classrooms.

So, skip to today at lunch time. I went to get a bottle of nice, cold, refreshing water out of the fridge. THEY WERE ALL GONE! GONE! I did a double take when I realized that every single bottle of water was GONE!

The part that bothers me the most is not knowing if it was a coworker that took the water or if it was a student. I hate not being able to trust people over a bottle of water that costs about 13 cents. (Well, multiply that by five...) If they really wanted a bottle, I would've been more than happy to give them one, but instead they stole it. I can't get passed that fact.

Now, I've decided to take a couple of bottles a day and just keep them in my insulated lunchbox. They may or may not stay cold, but at least I know I'll be able to drink one when I want it and not have to worry about it being stolen. Oh well...Life goes on!

It's the Great Pumpkin!!!

"Each year, the Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch that he thinks is the most sincere."

"Tonight, the Great Pumpkin will rise out of the pumpkin patch. He flies through the air and brings toys to all the children of the world."

The Great Pumpkin paid an early visit to our house during the night. Since he needed to focus on all the children of the world, I guess he decided to focus on the big kids tonight! He brought Marc some pretty cool stuff!

This morning when Marc got up and walked into the living room, he didn't even notice his bag of goodies by the door. (It takes him a few minutes to wake up.) But once he did, he was like a kid on Halloween night. Can you say "EXCITED?" The Great Pumpkin didn't leave anything for me, so I guess I need to try to be a little nicer!

Happy Halloween!

One Year Ago

We said goodbye to Guiedo one year ago yesterday. It's a day that will forever be in my mind, but yesterday I really felt like I needed to keep myself busy, so I wouldn't thing about it.

I still miss him everyday and start to cry when I think about him. But, I still believe that we made the right decision to put him down when we did, because he is no longer in pain.

Salvie has started to go downhill pretty quickly the past couple of months. As October 29 approached, I prayed that he would make it through that day, and he did. He is still dragging his back left leg a little bit, but he insists on following us all around the house, albeit a little slower. His mind is also still very alert, so as long as he doesn't seem to be in pain, we're going to let him be. I dread the day we have to make that decision.

We miss you, Guied!

I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watching Me

Tonight I did a little Halloween baking for our classroom party tomorrow afternoon. I made orange Creamsicle cupcakes with Creamsicle-flavored icing. I found these cute but kinda creepy eyeball rings to match the liners.

I have one student in my classroom who is allergic to red dye. I was not thinking when I made the cupcakes and finally remembered the allergy when I was getting ready to add the purple dye to the icing. Oops! I guess you need both red and yellow to make orange dye.

I scooped up a couple of spoonfuls of white icing and tried to come up with an alternative. Do you know how hard it is to come up with something Halloween when one of the main holiday colors is orange? I was about ready to mix up a smaller batch of cupcake batter when it hit me to make him a icing-filled cookie. (Think Double Doozie from The Cookie Company!)

I made a batch of chocolate chip cookie dough and baked just enough to make two rather large cookies. I froze the rest of the cookie dough for a later time. After the cookies cooled and were iced, I dipped them in (non-orange) Halloween sprinkles. This was the finished product:

Of course, the kids couldn't understand why this one child got a cookie, and they only got a lousy cupcake, no matter how much I tried to explain that he has an allergy. I ended up promising them a batch of cookies in the near future. (And I may need to make some for Marc and me, too!)

A Milestone Day

Today is Marc's 40th birthday! He's not too thrilled about it, but I guess he's taking it okay. He's gotten lots of cards in the mail and a ton of phone calls today wishing him a happy birthday. We're planning to go out later with my family to celebrate the big day!

Happy Birthday, Babe!

Happy Anniversary

Today is our 11th anniversary! Eleven years ago, I married my best friend, and eleven years later, I still feel the same way. Marc and I were made for each other, and as I've said before, it's no coincidence that an Alabama girl meet an Italian from Connecticut!

Marc still makes me laugh every day. He's my rock and is always there to support me. He listens to me when I need to vent and gripe. He understands my sense of humor, and I'm totally comfortable being myself around him. He knows a different side of me that hardly anyone ever sees. He's there to hold me when I cry. He laughs with me when I'm being silly and singing stupid made-up songs. He tolerates me when I'm in a grumpy mood. He knows me better than I know myself.

If I could do a rewind and have one moment to live over again, I would always choose to marry Marc. It was the best decision I've ever made, and I'd do it all again in a heartbeat!

I love you, Babe!

2009 Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party

After missing it last year, Marc and I decided to go to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party this year. It was so much fun, and we had a blast!

Going into the party!

They had a lot of Halloween decorations. Fall is my favorite season of the year, and I loved seeing all the pumpkins and Halloween stuff!

They had Cinderella's carriage out for pictures. It was stunning!

Characters were sprinkled throughout the park. The lines were pretty short, so it was easy to get pictures with them.

Eeyore, my favorite character!

Marc and the Mad Hatter

The party has its own fireworks called Hallowishes. They were the best ones I've ever seen!

This spooky ghost was protecting the Liberty Belle steamboat.

Then it was time for the Boo to You Halloween Parade! It was awesome...the best parade I've ever seen!

Mickey!

The ghost dancers

Creepy guy!

Since it was a too bright when we went into the park for the party, I stopped on the way out to take a few pictures of the decorations. Loved them!

The haul from trick or treating!

So, Marc and I felt like big kids all night! We had so much fun trick or treating, watching the fireworks and parade, and getting in a few more rides. We can't wait to do it all again!

Stars at Hollywood Studios!

This morning, we went to Hollywood Studios. Of course, we made a beeline to Toy Story Midway Mania and got Fast Passes. Then we got in the standby line to ride. (This is definitely my favorite ride at Hollywood Studios.)

After riding TSMM, we went over to see if Backlot Tours was running. It was just beginning to form a line, so we made our way up to the front. As we got closer, a cast member asked if she could get three people to help her, so Suzie volunteered Marc, Adam, and Todd.

After being prepped, the guys made their way to the stage. For some reason, this picture reminds me of astronauts heading to the shuttle for a mission.

When I took this next picture, I thought Marc was mad at me because he was having to be a part of the show. (Every time we've seen this show, the participants get soaked!) But later he told me that he was "thanking" Suzie for volunteering them.

They are about to begin the show, and Marc takes one last look around. I'm sure he was trying to think of a plan, so he wouldn't get soaked. It didn't work! (I switched to video at this point.)

So when Marc left, his backside was soaked! He didn't let that ruin his fun, though. I was beginning to get a migraine at this point and needed to go back to the room. Marc, however, stayed and had a blast!

Sunday at Magic Kingdom

We started off our first full day at Magic Kingdom. Since we had breakfast reservations before park opening, we were able to stop and take a few pictures of Scott, Kristi, William, and Kimberly in front of the castle.

Our next stop was Crystal Palace, which is a must do for each trip. There's no way I could do without the french toast puffs with honey and the potato casserole. Super yummy!

We got to visit with my best friend, Eeyore!

After breakfast, we made a beeline for Fantasyland. We rode Dumbo before the line got too long and then did some other rides. We were surprised that it was too busy, and the waits for the rides were under 15 minutes. I've never seen Peter Pan with such a short wait time.

For this trip, Marc persuaded me to try a Transderm patch to fight off motion sickness. I was really excited to try some of the rides I haven't been able to ride in years. First off...the ultimate test...the Teacups!

The seem so cute....

So innocent...

So colorful! But I know the truth! These babies can ruin a day in less than a minute! But I decided to be brave and try them anyway.

Kristi, Kimberly, and Suzie:

William and Scott:

I'm happy to report that the patch worked beautifully, and I didn't get the least bit sick after riding. I was also able to sit through Mickey's Philharmagic without getting sick. (Something about that magic carpet ride gets me every time!) Unfortunately, a few days later I would learn why it's important to always read the directions when taking a new medication. Bad side effects!

We made the rounds in the rest of the park. The crowds stayed low, and the weather was beautiful...something we would desperately miss later in the week!