wdwpoohbear...Jennifer

Yes, the magnets will be here hopefully before the 10th or very soon after.

Have fun!  Wish I could be there.

Those are all really cute!

Nice start!  I can't wait to see and hear about the "boneyard".

I remember when value season at resorts used to be almost all year other than summer, Easter and Christmas. When the dern rate schedules started having 20 categories and only about 6 weeks of values rates spread throughout the year, I was over it. It took a while, for me to finally throw up my hands and throw my ap away, but it's been over two years and I don't regret my decision to end my relationship with Disney. As locals, we went often and ate almost exclusively at tableservice restaurants. The quality kept going down while pricesj kept going up at a rapid rate. I know they didn't notice when I quit going.

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I would totally love to get married in the attic of the Haunted Mansion as well!  Then the reception can be in the banquet room there in the Haunted Mansion.

I am personal friends with chef TJ as we have worked together at Disney 
when is your trip and I will ask 

Just wanted to update. Joan got a name change to Addie a few days after being here. It's short for Adilee, a German name that means "powerful." Our son really loved the meaning of it as he feels like he has lost most power over his life. Addie will be giving some of that back to him. We tried it out to see if she would respond to it, as we didn't want to traumatize her. She seemed to know immediately that it was her. So she is now "Addie."

She has been in training since a week after we got her. She is so smart and amazing. She picked up all her commands within a few minutes and has perfected all of them. She walks on a lead so beautifully now. She stays a few inches from our side with her front legs just behind ours. She sits when we stop, automatically. As much fun as this is to see, I do resist stopped 10 times in 20' just to watch our sweet, smart girl and marvel in her goodness.
We love her so very much, that I cannot imagine life without her. She has been a huge blessing. Not long after we got Addie, our oldest, a Newfoundland/Shepherd mix, had a stroke and had to be euthanized. She was almost 15 years old. It was a very hard time for all of us. She had been born in our home, to a mother to young to have her. We had the pregnant mama from a neighbor who kept her on a chain outside. We didn't even know she was pregnant, she was only about 10 months old and fairly thin.

We had an appointment to get her fixed and get her shots. So, imagine our shock, when she ran across the living room just a few days prior the appointment and a puppy fell out of her! That puppy was followed by 10 more. The mama didn't want anything to do with the pups. Poor thing was just a baby herself. We tried  holding her down to let the babies nurse, but wasn't working. I went to Tractor Supply and got puppy milk and bottles and began bottle feeding them. Eight of the pups went to heaven in short order. I took the remaining to the vet and found out they were terribly premature. Only two survived the next week, girls - Faith and Hope.

We found a good home for one puppy, and they chose Hope. We kept Faith, who we always called Faithie. She grew to be a strong, 140 lb alpha dog of our family for many, many years. Her and I had a special bond, as I was the one that bottle nursed her 24/7 in the beginning of her life. She slept with me until she was too old to get on the bed. For her last years, she was on pain medicine and had difficulty with steps. On her worst days, my husband or son would carry her up and down to do her business. I knew she was way past her life expectancy, but honestly couldn't part with her as long as we could keep her from being in pain most of the time.

So, anyway, this post was supposed to be about Addie ... When Faithie had a stroke and had to go to heaven, Addie filled that spot in my broken heart. I didn't realize "I" needed her, but I certainly did. Faithie can never be replaced, as no person or dog can, but Addie has brought me so much love and happiness that the grieving process was lessened. Addie and her training fill us all with the beauty of fresh, new life. She is yet a baby, although a big one. Although she will eventually be a service dog for our son, she is so incredibly loved by every member of our family. I would take a bullet for her, or our other dogs, and I know they would for me as well.

Something that I never told Andy, as I didn't want to make the separation worse on him or his mom - for the first few days Addie was here, while she was still Joan, she would ask me to get her travel bag down for her to sniff and then lay her head on it. I always kept it up, but in her sight as I know she really wanted it her first night. When she would go to it, and want it down, I would sit with her, rub her, and tell her how loved she was. I would assure her that she was loved and that's why she was here. Just like an adopted child. After three days, she kept asking to have her travel bag. That's when we took the chance on changing her name. I left the travel bag out for another two weeks, but she never asked for it again, so I finally put it up.

We are packing up to leave for the Fort for 5 nights on Sunday. I did cut it down by one day, as we were originally scheduled for six nights. Our younger son (23) will be staying home with the dogs and will not be working for the week. He will be here full time with the dogs. Even so, I am stressed about going away for that long without the dogs. I came very close to canceling our trip. Depending on things go with us humans, we may end up cutting it short. We were away from Blaze, our other dog, for the first time in December and everything went fine. I was just as stressed leaving him for the first time. I'll be talking to Levi several times a day to check on them both. 

We are frequent campers, but our dogs go where we go. Can't do this in Disney. Once Addie goes through her service dog training, which she will easily ace, she will be able to go on cruises with us as well. That is about the only other vacation we take. 

Well, I know I've been babbling. Just wanted to update everyone how this story is going. I believe with all of my heart that Addie was meant to be with our family since birth, just none of us knew that. She will giving our son back his power and she filled what would have been an empty spot in all of our lives. 

I thought she was talking about her house too...don't feel bad.

I liked the lunch menu so I am sad to see that go.

My youngest son is on the severe end of the autism spectrum and although he has received service since very young and is a student in a Kennedy Krieger school he is is still non-verbal.  As Autism Awareness month draws to a close I find myself reflecting on my relationship with Benjamin. He is at times a terror and at times an angel. He exhausts me and fills me with energy all in the same one hour period. I would so love to know what he is thinking. When he bangs his head he breaks my heart and when he giggles he melts it. He fills me with pain and agony, joy and hope, confusion and clarity. How can one small human being control a life so fully? And then I think - the answer is simple, in this one truly magnificent way he is just like any other child of any other parent. All of them bring us hurt and pleasure, joy and sadness, fear and hope and we are all LUCKY to share their lives with them. So, when you think of me and my Benjamin don't ever feel pity or sadness for me because my life with him and all of the mystery it involves is priceless.



 

 

Not only do they touch our lives and we remember them for a long time, I just became convinced Wednesday night that other animals can remember their companions as well.  I keep Wrigley's remains on my computer desk and her collar with a bell sits on top of the box.  She has been there since end of April 2015.  Well, I noticed there was dust on the collar and her ornate box so I picked the collar up and shook it off which made the bell jingle as if she was wearing it again.  I've posted on here before how Rolo our dwarf Boxer and Wrigley were best friends.  When the bell jingled, Rolo came running from the other room and started to look around and she started to whimper as she's searching every nook and cranny in the room.  On a whim I jingled the bell again and she stopped and looked right at the collar.  Realizing what she was looking for I let Rolo sniff the collar and she gave it a couple of licks like she used to do to Wrigley.  I still haven't healed from her passing and it shocked me to see Rolo react to the collar that way.  That dust from it made my eyes water a bit...

What a great memory!  I really believe pets choose us as much as we choose them.  

Mine too.

For those 21 and over, one on one interactions of another variety happen nightly at Mickey's Backyard Massage Parlor and Casino, conveniently located next to the 3000 loop.  

I'm in...can't wait to read more!

Christmas ornaments. I have a whole collection from Disney.

Ok Fiends, here's where I'm at with the front and back designs.  Any and all feedback gratefully accepted.  :)

FRONT - design size 13w x 5h

 
BACK - design size 6w x 11.6h (could be made bigger if you want more coverage on the back)

No worries- all those traffic problems are going to be solved once the Governor's buddies build their premium pay lanes.
 
TCD

OK, I admit - I'm not a big college football fan, so I never thought I'd be posting here......
 
Now, living in the Columbia, SC area EVERYTHING is Gamecock garnet and black.  The wife is a football fan and it's too far a drive to get to her Bengals games, so we have taken in a few SC games.
 
Well, a close friend is from Texas and she is an A&M Aggie.  Having a family ranch in the area she invited us to spend a week and go see the SC/A&M game.
 
Let's just say I was a little apprehensive walking up to Kyle Field wearing Gamecock regalia.  You always read in the news about poor fans and how they treat the opposing team fans.
 
I was AMAZED!!  No other way to put it.  Outside the stadium, inside walking to our seats, heck even waiting in line for the men's room people kept walking up and welcoming us to College Station, thanking us for attending the game or just a quick handshake and thanks for coming..... 
 
A&M should be proud of the demeanor of their students and fans!

I am in site 2064. Kicking myself for forgetting my sign at home.

Waiting to eat at Trails End!

These little beauties are destined to make the trip south and end up in some Mac and cheese.
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