Why I Stopped Blogging

I have always loved writing. When I was younger, I used to dream about becoming a published author. Does this blog count? ;) After I stopped teaching three years ago (I can't believe it's already been three years!) I decided to start this blog as a way to explore some of my other passions: decorating, cooking, fashion, travel, and of course, writing.

I enjoyed producing content, but always felt embarrassed and uncomfortable about sharing it with anyone. There are so many amazing influencers (blogs and on Instagram) that I follow, and they make it look so easy. It comes naturally to them. Not for me. I guess I lack the self-confidence it takes to be able to put myself out there and say, "Come follow me! Look at how awesome I am! If you buy this you'll be awesome too!" That's not to say that any of the influencers that I follow are doing that. Every one of them seems real, not like they're just putting on a show to get you to go out and spend money. However, with that being said, it's hard to be an influencer and make money (it is a job) without looking like you're telling people to "buy all the things." It's hard to follow someone's blog or Instagram and see them sharing cute new clothes or decor all the time and not start to think you need to buy the clothes or decor too. I have a closet full of clothes that I really didn't need because I was sucked into believing I needed "all the things." But again, that's not the influencer's fault, it's mine for feeling like I needed to spend money to be happy/better.

I never planned on making my blog a career. It's not. I've never made money off of this blog (if you clicked a link I shared I would get 5 cents put into an account, but you only ever get paid once you hit a certain level and I never got there), and I'm totally fine with that. I did receive those PopSugar Must Have boxes for free in exchange for a review (it didn't have to be on the blog, just social media). In all honesty, I loved the boxes that I received, and still use many of the items that were included, but I haven't ever purchased a box, so it was disingenuous of me to tell you to go out and buy one. With that being said, if I hadn't received so many boxes free I may have tried it just once for fun. I have tried Birchbox and Stitch Fix and it was always fun opening "happy mail," but the point is that you didn't need it, so it wasn't fair of me to show it to you and say "Here's this offer code. Go spend money!" I don't want to be that person that tells you that you need to completely revamp your wardrobe or decorate your house to be enough. You don't. You are beautiful and your house is a home. And that's enough.

I do want to continue writing, but I don't really know what to write about. That's one of the big reasons I stopped blogging - I didn't want to always be sharing new things for you to go buy, but I didn't know what to write about if it wasn't that. And again, I don't necessarily feel 100% comfortable putting myself out there. I definitely have some insecurities I need to work on, and I need to stop looking at other bloggers and Instagrammers and comparing myself to them. I am enough. I think I actually wrote a blog post awhile back with that title. I guess I should probably go back and read it and see if what I said then can finally sink in. Read it. Definitely need to take what I said to heart.

If there is something that you would like to see on this blog, please share! I've got plenty of time, so if you want book reviews, vacation itineraries (I'm currently researching and planning for our trip to Park City in March, but I'd be happy to do some research on your vacation for you - it's seriously #sofun to research and plan out a vacation - even if I'm not the one taking it ;), meals, closet staples, etc. I want to write, but I really don't know what to write, so if you want to hear from me, please share your ideas/requests! I don't know, maybe I'll just use this as a journal, though journals are usually meant to be private. I don't know. I'm still trying to find my purpose (my #oneword for the year).

XOXO,

Heidi

Life Update

I wanted to pop in and let you know that my posts may be a bit light for the next month or so. I was offered a tutoring job at the elementary school where I used to teach (the school my kids go to) that I just couldn't pass up. Initially it was going to be half day, so I though I'd still have time to blog, work out, stick to the cleaning schedule that I started a few weeks ago, etc, but now it's full day, so it's going to be a balancing act. At the end of the month I'm either going to be filling out an application for a full-time teaching job next year or be exhausted and ready for a vacation (or both!). A few months ago I was sure that I'd be back to teaching full-time next year, but then I started to find my way, and now I'm kind of thinking I'm good the way things are. Of course, I'm two days into my tutoring job and spent half the night planning for the groups I'm working with, so teaching is definitely a passion. We shall see. If any of my PTA friends are reading this they're probably freaking out a bit right now - I signed up to be president-elect next year, and can't exactly do that if I'm teaching! Rest assured ladies, I'm happy where I am. I think?

Anyhow, I will update my blog when I can, and I'll do my best to keep up with my Facebook page. If you haven't liked my page yet, please do!

Talk to you soon!

XOXO,

I Am Enough

I have been debating about whether or not to write this post, but I decided that if I'm going to be real with you then I need to put it all out there. I've been struggling a lot lately with whether or not I'm enough....am I pretty enough? Smart enough? Am I a good enough mom? Wife? Sister? Daughter? Friend? Blogger?

Unfortunately a lot of these feelings have come up since I stopped working. Being a stay-at-home mom when your kids are at school, your husband is at work/traveling, and most of your friends are still working is hard. It's lonely. That's one of the reasons I started this blog. It's a way for me to still feel connected to something. When I write a blog post it's like I'm talking to a friend. I'm not as lonely. I enjoy it. But it's also hard because I don't necessarily feel like I can write a post if I don't have something "new" to share. Since there isn't much new going on in my life, that usually means new clothes, shoes, decor, etc. And that means I'm spending money. It's not like I'm spending my way into serious debt, but it's also not realistic to always be going out (or online) and buying things. And again, am I good enough at this where people actually want to read what I'm writing? Am I writing about things people actually care about? At this point my blog traffic isn't very high, but is it because people aren't interested in what I have to say or is it because I'm not good enough (again with not being good enough!) at marketing myself?

It's so hard not to compare myself to the other bloggers I follow. And at this point my followers pale in comparison to theirs. But it's not about them, it's about me. I need to stop comparing myself to them, but as women isn't that what we always do? We live in a society where we're constantly comparing ourselves to others. I even find myself comparing Sophia and Carter at times. But I shouldn't compare them. And I shouldn't be comparing myself to anyone. But how do you stop? I guess the first step, as with anything, is recognizing that it's happening, which I guess I'm doing now.

I am good enough at everything I do. Could I be better? Absolutely. But I only need to be better for myself, not for my blog audience (that would be you), however big or small, not for anyone. I am enough.

Source of Quotes

XOXO,

Fitness Update

It's been a little over two months since I shared what I was doing to get fit and healthy in this post, so I thought I'd give an update. 

Top / Shorts / Shoes / Sports Bra

The biggest lesson I've learned in the three months that I've been working out regularly (4-6 days/week) is that it's not about the number on the scale. Okay, so I probably shouldn't say it's a lesson that I've learned....it's a lesson I'm TRYING to learn. I've  lost about five pounds, but the past few weeks I have kind of been at a standstill with my weight, which is frustrating. I'm okay with my current weight, but then I think about what I weighed when I got married.....I'd like to get closer to that number (see, I said I want to get CLOSER, not reach it. I'm being realistic....there isn't any way that I'm going to get back to my weight as a 23 year old, right?). I wish that I would have taken measurements prior to beginning the regimen because then I wouldn't be so focused on the number on my scale, which I'm still loving, the scale, not necessarily the number (buy it HERE or HERE).  When I look in the mirror I can definitely see a difference in my body, in a good way. My stomach and my upper thighs are my biggest concerns, and I have noticed a big difference in the way they look. This is where taking measurements would have come in handy - the number on the scale may not be changing as dramatically as I'd like, but if I'd taken measurements I'd have confirmation that a change was happening (because, you know, looking in the mirror isn't good enough).

Anyhow...with Michael traveling, soccer practices, etc it's been hard to stick to the meal plan I created, at least when it comes to dinners, so while I was still trying to make smarter choices when it came to what I ate, I wasn't necessarily paying attention to my daily calorie count. A few weeks ago I started using the Lose It app. I had originally planned on joining Weight Watchers, but it's $20 a month and Lose It is free (unless you select their premium plan, but even then it's only $39.99 for an entire year), so I decided to stick with Lose It. It's really easy to use - you simply create a profile with your current weight and your goal weight (and how quickly you want to reach your goal) and it tells you how many calories you can eat each day. Once you've created your profile you log your meals, snacks, and any exercise by scanning the item, searching by product, or manually entering the product information. You can even create recipes to calculate the complete calorie count on different foods (eg Linguine in Clam Sauce - 361 calories per serving, Dilly Dip - 96 calories per serving, Dump Cake - 201 calories per serving). When you log exercise, it subtracts the calories burned from your daily total. I still try to stay at or below my daily calories without deducting the exercise, but it's nice to have a buffer.

While the elliptical is good for cardio, I decided to add in some additional exercises. I've started doing the 30 Day Butt Lift Challenge as well as the 30 Day Plank Fat Burning Challenge, and have also started including crunches and weights into my daily workouts. I'm hoping that by adding in these exercises I'll begin to see a bigger difference.

Source

Source

We are going to Hawaii in June for our 15th anniversary, so that was my motivation to start working out, but I've gotten to the point where I feel guilty when I don't work out (even though I still don't enjoy it, like AT ALL), so hopefully I'll keep it up. What are you doing to get fit and stay healthy?

XOXO,

Friday Favorites: For Your Health

It's January, so that means that you've probably set a resolution to eat healthier and exercise more. I know I have, though I don't like to think of it as a resolution because resolutions usually get broken, and I'm hoping that doesn't happen for me. I'm using my upcoming anniversary trip to Hawaii as motivation to stick with it and make this more of a life change. With that being said, this week's Friday Favorites are all somewhat geared towards living a healthier lifestyle.

Shorts / Scale / Tervis Tumbler / Devotional / 

52 Lists for Happiness / Elliptical / Nikes

What I'm Doing

I wish I was one of those people who enjoyed working out, but I'm not. I grew to like it prior to adopting Carter when my friend Erin and I would go to the hip hop and yoga workout classes at LA Fitness together, but with the birth of her son and Carter's adoption, we stopped going and I eventually cancelled my membership. We belong to the rec center in our community, and they offer some classes, so maybe someday soon I'll be able to talk a friend or two into joining me (it's more fun when you work out with friends), but for now I'm working out at home. We purchased an elliptical a few years ago, so I've been trying to work out on that at least four days a week. On days when it's nice outside I'll take our golden retriever, Beemer, for walks. We used to take family walks every night before bed, and I'm trying to work that back into our routine. Sophia and Carter enjoy doing yoga at night, so I join them when I can. If you have kids, you should check out Cosmic Kids Yoga on YouTube - both kids love it!

I also picked up the Fitbit Aria Scale, which I love. It's connected to my Fitbit account, and tracks my weight for me. Prior to buying it I told myself that a scale wasn't necessary - I didn't need to see a number on a scale to know whether I needed to lose weight/exercise more, which I still think is true, but it does feel good to step on the scale and see that the number is going down (or, at least, that it isn't going up!). I think part of my frustration with scales was that the ones I purchased never seemed to be accurate - when I'd go to the doctor the number was always higher there (while I preferred the lower number I was seeing at home, I wanted something that was accurate). So far the Aria scale has been the same as what I'm seeing at the doctor, and we've had it over a year now, so I'd definitely recommend it if you're looking for something a little more high tech.

What I'm Wearing

When you workout, you need to be dressed for it, right? There's just something about having cute workout wear that makes working out seem better.

Le Mystère makes my favorite bra, so when I saw that they made sports bras, I decided to give it a chance. It's very comfortable and supportive. It's designed for C-cup and up, so if you're an A or B cup you could get something a little cuter (like this or this). It's on the pricier side, though it seems that most bras are nowadways, so I'd suggest checking on Amazon for a deal. I'll usually just throw on a t-shirt over it, and add my Nike Half Zip if I'm going to be outside and it's cooler.

The Lululemon Run Times Short *4-Way Stretch 4" are my favorite workout shorts! I have a few of Nike Tempo Shorts, but I like my Lululemon shorts better. The waistband is smoother and they're more attractive on. My sister-in-law has several pairs of tempo shorts as does Sophia and they look great on them, but they just look weird on me.

I have two pairs of Nike 'Free Flyknit' Running Shoes and I absolutely love them! Up until getting my first pair of these, I didn't wear athletic shoes because they just never felt very comfortable to me. When we went to Disneyland the first time, I realized that I probably needed something a little sturdier than my flip flops, so I picked up a pair of Nike Frees. I really liked them, so when I needed a new pair I decided to stick with them, but when I went shopping I thought the design on the Flyknits was cuter, so I got those instead. I'm so glad I did because they are so stinking comfortable! And did I mention that everytime I wear them I get compliments on how cute they are? I don't wear mine with socks (I don't think you're supposed to - they're described as having a "snug, sock-like fit"), so being able to wash them is really important, and these wash and dry really well. They're not cheap, but every once in awhile you can find them on sale. If you're thinking about getting them, now is the time to snap them up! I have two fun colored ones, but I think I'm going to pick up a black pair for our trip to Hawaii this summer. 

What I'm Eating & Drinking

Last year I shared that we had started ordering Blue Apron boxes in this post. I love it because it takes the guesswork out of what to cook for dinner! Up until this point, we've gone with the meals for two, but I just changed our subscription to the family meal plan. It's only two meals a week, as opposed to the three we were originally receiving, but that may end up being a good thing because with Michael's travel schedule, practices, school events, etc it was sometimes hard to cook all three meals (don't get me wrong, I make dinner almost every night, but I don't always have time to devote to the prep work that these meals require). I'm also counting on Sophia and Carter eating those meals, and they're both pretty picky, so two fights meals a week is probably plenty. If you'd like to try it, let me know in the comments below because I've got free meals I can share with you!

I also just recently discovered the Skinnytaste blog. So far I've only made a few of her meals, but we've enjoyed everything we've tried so far. We have also used the Drop 10 Diet by Lucy Danziger, editor in chief of SELF magazine, as a guide to meal planning. I'm not necessarily on a diet (I had Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream for dessert last night!), but I'm trying to be more aware of what I'm eating. The Drop 10 Diet is perfect for this because it truly isn't a specific diet, it's more focused on adding superfoods to your current plan. There are several recipes in the book, as well as on the SELF website, and we have incorporated some favorite recipes from the South Beach and Sonoma Diet books. I sit down each week and come up with our meals, which makes grocery shopping a lot easier. Here is a copy of a two week plan I created. If for some reason it doesn't work let me know in the comments below and I can email it to you.

I'd love to say that I have given up Diet Coke, but I don't think that's ever going to happen. I have, however, cut back to one (okay, sometimes two) a day, and am drinking more water. I find that if I have a big tumbler I can refill throughout the day I tend to drink more.

What I'm Reading

I picked up this daily devotional and have been trying to be more purposeful about taking time out of each day to read and pray. I also picked up this journal, which has helped me to refocus and be thankful for the things I have. It's important to focus just as much on your mental health as your physical health.

I've also started reading for pleasure more. You can read more about some of the books I've recently read here. I just discovered that our library is connected to Overdrive which allows me to check out eBooks and read them on my phone, so I'm debating whether it makes sense to buy a Kindle or not. I really enjoy holding a book in my hand, but I like the idea of being able to immediately check out/download a new book when I finish one and am not in love with reading on my phone (I'd like something a little bigger), so I'm considering getting a Kindle. If you have an eReader, which one do you have? Would you recommend it? Thanks in advance for your help!

I'd love to hear what you're doing to stay healthy this year!

XOXO,

Shine Your Sink

**Editing to add that I just recently read that you shouldn't mix Dawn and bleach. I haven't ever had anything bad happen, but you don't want to create a chemical reaction and have noxious gas floating around in your kitchen, so if you try this skip adding the dish soap.**

Several years ago I found directions on how to shine your sink on the Flylady website. I don't know about you, but something about having a clean and shiny kitchen sink just makes things better. Here is how I do it:

1. Clean your sink with your cleaner of choice. I purchased the Honest Multi-Surface Cleaner the last time I was at Target and so far I've been really happy with it. It smells great, I can feel good about using it because there are no harsh chemicals, and it WORKS!

It looks pretty good after I clean it, but once a month I like to make it shine, so I move on to step 2.

2. Plug up your sink and fill it with hot water. When it's about half full, I add a cup of Clorox Bleach and a tablespoon of Dawn (if you have a double sink, use a half cup of bleach and add the Dawn at the end).

3. When the sink is almost full, add another cup of bleach and another tablespoon of Dawn. 

4. Once the sink is full set the timer for 60 minutes and walk away.

5. When the timer goes off, you're ready to drain the sink. The water will still be incredibly hot, so you'll want to use something to pull the plug on the drain.

Okay, I'm gonna be real here and tell you that I couldn't quite maneuver the tongs the right way and ended up just reaching my arm in there and pulling the plug, but the water was still REALLY hot so I'm not going to recommend that method to you. 

6. Once the sink drains, take a towel and dry the sink. At this point your sink should look pretty good, but since mine is stainless I finish it with the Weiman Stainless Steel Cleaner.

In the end your sink will shine for days! 

I hope that you enjoy your shined sink as much as I enjoy mine!

XOXO,

Mother's Day Gift Ideas

Mother's Day is May 8th! That's just a little over two weeks away! With that in mind, I thought I'd share some gift ideas with you.

Jewelry

I'll start with the obvious. Pay attention to whether the mom you're shopping for wears silver or gold (or a combination of both) and make sure that you stick with that metal when shopping, unless she has specifically told you otherwise.

This is probably one of my favorite necklaces. If you purchase it, make sure to use her initials (First Last Middle).

Jennifer Zeuner

These rings are incredibly unique and fun. They have single, double, and triple stack rings depending on the number of children. If there are more than three kids, you can put multiple names on one ring.

Nelle and Lizzy

Charm bracelets are always fun, and it's the gift that keeps on giving, because you can continue buying charms. James Avery is having a charm event right now that is a pretty good deal: buy two charms and a charm bracelet and receive $49 off.

James Avery - Dillard's

Here are some mother's charms from James Avery:

Source List:

Mother's Love

Boy Silhouette Charm (engrave with son's name and birthday)

Girl Silhouette Charm (engrave with daughter's name and birthday)

And just because I'm banking on Michael looking at this blog (or maybe my dad or mother-in-law will look and share this with him), I'll share a few that I'd like to add to my charm bracelet.

Source List:
Engravable Dog Bone Charm 
Eiffel Tower Charm

Perfume

Perfume is a good gift if the mom you're shopping for wears perfume. If she has a signature scent, repurchasing that scent is a good idea (unless she has a full, or nearly full, bottle). Maybe there is a specific perfume she wants. It doesn't hurt to ask! If you'd rather surprise her, or buy something new, here are some of my favorites.

Source List:

1. Chanel Allure
2. Issey Miyake L'Eau d'Issey Summer
3. Hermes Jour d'Hermes Gardenia
4. Tory Burch
5. Ralph Lauren - Ralph

Handbag

If you're going to purchase a new handbag, don't buy one from Target (unless she's specifically asked for one). Buy her something special that she wouldn't normally buy for herself. Here are some ideas.

Source List:

1. Rebecca Minkoff Isobel Hobo
2. Kate Spade Hawthorne Lane ~ Ryan Tote
3. Tory Burch Small Britten Leather Slouchy Tote
4. Clare V. Genuine Calf Hair Leopard Foldover Clutch

Tickets

Concert tickets, game tickets, show tickets, airline tickets, any tickets! Is there a Broadway show coming to your city? Better yet, fly her to NYC to see a show! Is there a concert that she'd like to see? Or maybe a sporting event....does she like baseball? Golf? Surprise her with a trip to the wine country in California! She deserves a vacation, and so do you! Be creative!

Appliances

I can't speak for every mother, but most women would prefer not to get an appliance as a gift. However, there are a few appliance gifts you can get away with giving (provided the mother you're shopping for actually enjoys cooking), so I'm sharing those. Since this isn't every woman's idea of a gift, please make sure you are POSITIVE she wants the appliance before you buy it! I have the mixer, but I still need a white Le Creuset Dutch Oven (hint, hint).

KitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer

Le Creuset Signature Dutch Oven

Mother's Day is about showing the mom(s) in your life how much she means to you. Buy her a card (and not just the first one you grab off the shelf ~ read it!) and something that she will love. Hopefully my list inspires you! Please post a comment and share what you buy her!

XOXO,

Vacation Surprise!

My sister's 40th birthday was over Spring Break, so we decided to surprise our kids with a trip to Disney World to celebrate! I'm usually really bad about keeping gifts secret, but I somehow managed to keep the secret since last August! Of course, all of the secrets and hiding things I purchased for the trip also meant that I forgot about the Unofficial Guide to Disney World book that I purchased until the day we left, but it was worth it to see their faces!

I created a Scavenger Hunt for the morning of the trip to reveal the surprise. We were leaving on a 10:00 flight, but a news story from the day before (my brother was interviewed!) had us all a little worried about the lines we'd be facing at the airport so we decided to leave early. Okay, so not really that early considering most people plan on being at the airport two hours early, but when your husband travels all the time for work you think arriving at the airport anything more than an hour early is EARLY. We planned on leaving at 8:00. so Michael and I got up at 5:45 to shower and finish packing. We were finished by 6:30 and were more than a little excited to surprise the kids, so we woke them at 6:45. Sophia was more than a little annoyed when we came in singing, "It's Spring Break! Time to get our staycation started! Who's up for shadow puppets?" I probably should have prefaced this by saying that the kids were planning for a staycation, complete with shadow puppets, dying flowers, a trip to Dave & Buster's....exciting stuff! I say that in jest, but Carter was actually pretty disappointed when he thought we wouldn't be able to make shadow puppets. Silly boy! Anyhow, back to the story. 

Once they were both somewhat awake, we started the scavenger hunt (linked above). They had so much fun with it and didn't catch on until the very end (I think they were both half asleep during the majority of it!). Here is a video of the end of the scavenger hunt (it lasted awhile). And yes, that is me saying, "Read the clue! Read the clue!" ;-)

Once they realized that we were going on a trip, they were so excited! Unfortunately, since we woke them up so early we had a lot of time to kill. I turned on the Peanuts movie and waited for their next surprise to arrive. Finally, at 7:45 there was a knock on the door. I played it off that it was the neighbor boy coming to play and sent them to answer the door.

Again, it took them all awhile to figure things out ~ Sophia and Carter were expecting their friend to be at the door, and the twins thought we were just taking them to the airport. Too many surprises for one day! Once everyone had settled down, we Ubered to the airport. The lines weren't nearly as scary as they were in the news story so we made it through security pretty quickly and went to Fridays for breakfast.

The flight was pretty fast and the kids were all great! My only complaint, and for us it really isn't a complaint because we had assigned seats when we arrived at the airport, is that the airline oversold the flight (for Spring Break, really?) so there were several people that didn't end up with seats.

Because we were staying at a Disney resort and had signed up for Disney Magical Express, we were able to bypass baggage claim and head straight for the bus (they send you luggage tags to stick on your bags that have your name and resort on them. Disney picks them up at the airport and delivers them to your hotel room). It felt a little weird leaving the airport without our luggage, but just a few hours later it was delivered straight to our room at the Port Orleans - Riverside. Magical! ;-)

Disney Springs

The first day was spent swimming in the pool at the hotel, and that night we took a  water taxi from the resort to Disney Springs (if you've been to Disneyland, this is their version of Downtown Disney). It was wall-to-wall people! There were pockets where you had some room to spread out, but it was definitely nerve-racking walking around with four kids and tens of thousands of people. Actually, I don't really know how many people were there, but I do know that there were 50,000+ people at the Magic Kingdom the next day, so it wouldn't surprise me if the numbers at Disney Springs were that high. We went into the Christmas store before heading to dinner at Portobello (good Italian food). I'm so glad we decided to make reservations because they told the lady that checked in ahead of me that it was a two hour wait, and shortly thereafter they stopped taking walk-ins. Unless you're dying to eat at one of the restaurants I'd skip Disney Springs.

Dining Plan

We signed up for the dining plan, so booked reservations for many of our meals ahead of time. I'd definitely recommend the dining plan if you are planning on eating at any of the restaurants. You do have to pay the tip, which usually ends up being about the same amount a family of four would pay for a normal dinner out, but it's worth it. You get plenty of food, and if you're doing a character meal, there is plenty of entertainment. Just make sure to check on the number of meals you get charged for at each restaurant - my brother and his family ate at Le Cellier Steakhouse in Epcot and were charged two table service meals per person.

Most of the Quick Service restaurants don't take reservations, but Be Our Guest does (at least for breakfast, which is when we went). Even though it's considered a QSR, you get a ton of food. I had eggs florentine in a puff pastry shell with ham and roasted tomatoes (so good!) and they brought us an assortment of pastries to share. The other days we used our QSR meals for breakfast at the hotel.

For character meals, we had lunch at Crystal Palace one day and Akershus the next. Both were really good. Crystal Palace was a buffet lunch with Winnie the Pooh and friends. Akershus is a sit down (buffet for appetizers) lunch with the Princesses. I had the Bassert Biff (braised beef) - so yummy! I'm not sure if this usually happens, but there were five princesses at our lunch. We got to meet Ariel, Aurora, Belle, Cinderella, and Snow White!

For dinners we ate at Portobello in Disney Springs the first night, Biergarten in Epcot the next, and Boatwright's at our hotel the third.

Biergarten was part of the kids' final surprise - their other cousins were at Disney World too, and we were having dinner together!

For snacks, we got a Dole Whip at Aloha Isle (refreshing), Mickey ice cream bars, Mickey ice cream sandwiches, and a huge pulled pork slider (there was a stand in America at Epcot - definitely worth getting if you see it).

Magic Bands and FastPass+

We loved having the magic bands! It was so nice not having to worry about carrying a room key, credit cards, cash, park tickets, etc. The magic bands eliminated the fighting between Sophia and Carter over who would open the hotel room door ~ one of them would open the door, go inside, and then the other one would open the door and go in. We were able to connect the magic bands to a credit card, so whenever we needed to pay for something we scanned a band and entered the pin. So nice!

The FastPass+ system is great ~ if you're staying at one of the parks, you are able to choose three fast passes per day ahead of time. I was disappointed that they had to be at the same park, because there were a few of the parks that only had one ride/attraction that we needed fast passes for, but you couldn't mix parks. The fast passes allowed us to jump some pretty long lines (I think the longest we waited for a ride was 20 minutes with the fast pass, without it would have been over an hour). Unfortunately, after almost every ride the kids would say, "Let's do it again!" and we'd have to tell them no because the wait was too long. There is an option to sign up for additional fast passes after the first three are used/expire, but we didn't have much luck with it. There was plenty of other stuff to do while there, but it was just a bummer that we didn't get to ride more rides.

Universal Studios

We spent three nights at the Port Orleans - Riverside, and then we transferred over to the Loew's Royal Pacific. We were disappointed when we checked in to receive a room key and individual express passes for each of us. The magic bands are so streamlined! We purchased lanyards in the hotel gift shop to hold all of our stuff and moved on.

If you're staying at a Universal resort, you get to enter one of the parks an hour early. The only thing that's open is the Harry Potter section, but it was totally worth it because we got the kids their wands (we did the interactive wands at $47 a piece ~ expensive, but worth it to get to do magic at the parks) and we had breakfast before the rest of the park opened.

The express pass I mentioned in the first paragraph is so much better than the Disney FastPass+! In fairness to Disney, they have too many resorts to allow all of their hotel guests unlimited fast passes ~ the lines for non-Disney guests would end up being the short ones! The express pass allowed us to jump the line on EVERY ride as many times as we wanted. Hotel guests get them included with their stay, but you can also purchase one at the park for $90 or more per person/day! I think the longest we ever waited for a ride was 25 minutes, and that was only because the ride malfunctioned and they closed it briefly. If you're planning on going, stay at one of the hotels ~ you can walk to the park in less than ten minutes and the express pass is totally worth it ~ when the kids would say, "Let's ride it again!" we just jumped back in line!

Overall it was a great trip! We loved both Disney World and Universal Studios, and can't wait to go back! I know that I left a lot of information out, so if you have any specific questions post them below.

XOXO,

Journey Home {Our Adoption Story}

For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be a mom.  And before I wanted to be a mom, I wanted to be a big sister. I was the baby in the family. Growing up, I always wanted my mom to have another baby. When I realized that wasn’t going to happen, I focused all of my attention on being the best mom I could be to my doll Susie Q.

Fast forward to June 1, 2002. My wedding day. Michael and I had been together since November of 1996. We graduated from high school together, went away to college together, and now were ready to start our adult lives together. Shortly after getting married, we packed up our belongings and moved 1600 miles from home. Michael had been offered a one year internship at the FASB that we couldn't pass up. We said goodbye to our friends and family and began married life in a new state. It was summer when we arrived and I had yet to find a teaching job, so when Michael was at work, I was home by myself. I was lonely. I began hoping and wishing for a baby, but this time it wasn’t a brother or sister I was wishing for, it was a son or daughter. Michael wasn't ready (what 22 year old guy is?), so I had to settle for a puppy.

In November of 2002, we began looking for a dog. In December, we traveled home to Texas for Christmas and came back to Connecticut with a 6 week old Golden Retriever we'd named Bailey. The first few months we got to experience what it might be like to have a new baby. She would wake us up in the middle of the night and we’d have to trek outside in the snow so she could use the restroom, and then she’d cry when we tried to put her back to bed. One of my good friends who had two kids would listen to my stories and tell me it was just like having a baby. Well, almost.

We stayed in Connecticut for a year and then it was back to Texas. We built our first house, I got a teaching job at the same school as my sister, and Michael began his job at E&Y. In 2006 we finally decided we were settled enough to try to have a baby. I had been taking birth control pills for several years to regulate my periods, so when I stopped taking them it was a bit of an adjustment. After we started trying I did what every girl does, I went out and bought pregnancy tests. Month after month the results came back negative. My sister and her husband had struggled to get pregnant, so they were able to share their experiences and advice with us. We called the fertility specialist they'd used and made an appointment. We tried clomid. It didn't work. Michael went in for tests. Before we got the results of his tests we started talking about adoption. My sister and her husband had researched adoption prior to getting pregnant with twins, so we were once again armed with information. I had submitted our initial application to the Gladney Center for Adoption prior to Michael's appointment, and we received confirmation that we were approved to attend their information seminar before we went in to get the results of Michael's tests. We talked and kind of felt like God was leading us in the direction of adoption, that our path to a family would be different than most, but still ours. When we went to Michael's appointment we found out that he would need to have a procedure done at the same time I was going through in vitro. There was no guarantee it would work, but that was the route we were offered. This only served to confirm the decision we'd already made: we were going to adopt! 

In November of 2006, we attended an all day adoption seminar at the Gladney Center. At the end of the day we left feeling confident that we were meant to adopt, and we knew everything that went along with it. We were pretty sure we wanted to adopt through Gladney, but we decided to attend another adoption seminar to see what other options there were. A few weeks after attending the Gladney seminar we attended a seminar at Catholic Charities. We came in full of adoption knowledge because of all that we had learned at the Gladney seminar, and we left feeling like we knew more than the ladies who were facilitating the seminar at Catholic Charities. Don't get me wrong, Catholic Charities does amazing things, it just wasn't the agency for us. We immediately began filling out our application to adopt through Gladney. It was a long process filled with home visits, trainings, and lots of paperwork, but finally in July of 2007 we found out that we had been approved to adopt! Once you're officially approved it's like you're officially expecting! Except in the case of adoption, you don't know how long you'll have to wait to hold your precious baby in your arms! At the Gladney seminar we went to, they said the average wait for domestic adoption is anywhere from 4-14 months.

Once we were approved, we began working on our adoption profile. It's basically a scrapbook of your life to share with potential birthmoms. In early August we handed copies of our profile to our caseworker. We decided it was time to start getting a nursery ready (again, when you're adopting you never know when the baby will be coming, so it makes sense to at least have furniture in the nursery). We ordered the furniture and it was delivered on September 8, 2007. 

On September 12th I received a call from my caseworker. There had been what's called a "drop in" ~ a birthmother who says she has chosen adoption after giving birth. A baby girl was born on September 9, 2007. Did we want our profile shown? Um, yes!! Try as I might not to get my hopes up, I hung up and told a colleague, "My daughter was born on September 9th!" I knew it didn't make sense for her to pick us since it had only been a month since we'd given our profile to Gladney, but my heart was telling me she was ours! We waited nine days for the call. Finally, on September 21st when I was a Red Robin for happy hour after work I received a phone call. I squealed, "Are you serious?" and quickly dashed for the exit (Michael wasn't with me, my sister and friends were, and I wanted him to be the first one to know). Our caseworker gave me all of the information I needed and I called Michael. Since the birthfather was not around to sign away his rights, they had to put him on a paternity registry, which meant we had to wait thirty days before we could meet her and bring her home. Torture! They did send us one picture of us that night. Look at those cheeks! 

We decided that even though we had a few weeks to get ready we needed to get to Babies 'R Us that night to register, buy bedding, etc (my sister and friends immediately started planning a baby shower). I called my parents and they met my sister, Michael, and I at BRU to start shopping! We bought bedding and other essentials and registered for the rest. 

The next day our caseworker called with the name and number of the transitional care home that she would be staying in while we waited. Momma Angela and her husband Kevin were amazing! She called me daily with updates and sent plenty of pictures. It made the wait a little easier knowing she was in good hands.

As hard as it was for us not to bring her home right away, the thirty day waiting period allowed us to have three baby showers (one with Michael's coworkers, one at the school I taught at, and one with family and friends). We were overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and generosity of our friends and family, and were ready to bring our baby girl home! 

On October 15, 2007, we went to the Gladney Center for placement. Both sets of grandparents and Michael's sister joined us at Gladney. When we arrived they brought us to one of the placement rooms. We sat down and waited for what seemed like forever (in reality it was probably only 15-20 minutes). Finally Kevin walked in with Sophia. It was love at first sight! He handed her to me and Michael and I just stood there staring at our beautiful daughter, Sophia Renee.

We finally moved to the couch so she could eat, and after spending some time with Momma Angela and Kevin we took a family picture and headed home. 

When we arrived home she was ready for a nap, and of course Michael was too! This soon became her favorite place to sleep!

Fast forward a year to her first birthday. We started to talk about adopting again. Cost was a factor, and we were pretty content with our little family of three (four if you count Bailey!). We knew we eventually would want to adopt again, but we were having too much fun with our little toddler and it just wasn't the right time. We decided to wait to resubmit our application.

On July 5, 2009 I received a call from our caseworker at Gladney that changed everything! Sophia's birthmother had given birth to a baby boy on April 8th. Did we want to bring him home? We were in the car and Michael was only hearing my end of the conversation, so I told her I'd talk to him and call her back. It took about three minutes for us to call her back and say yes! We had a son! 

Because we hadn't submitted an application to adopt a second time we had to go through background checks, fingerprinting, trainings, home visits, etc before we could bring him home. Again! This time we got to meet him before placement. It was love at first sight!

We were also provided with lots of pictures of our sweet boy!

On July 21st we did placement at our house. Sophia was in love with her baby brother, Carter Michael. We all were! 

I truly believe that everything leading up to the moment we brought them both home was all part of God's plan. We are their parents because He wanted us to be. We are truly blessed! We often get asked if we will adopt again, and our answer always is, "It just depends if the phone rings!" If it's in His plan, then we will. But we leave it in His hands.

XOXO,