Some BIG news for our little family!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so here's 2.....

Disney Magic Part 2

Okay, I SHOULD be studying, but I needed a break, and a quick pick-me-up, so I figured I'd take a few minutes to update the blog with some more Disney pics!

Monday Nov. 3, our first day in the parks!

The very first park we went to was Disney Hollywood Studios.

Here's Mommy and Landon getting ready to leave:

Landon got to see all of his favorite morning cartoon characters live on stage!  He saw Pooh, and Mickey, and the Little Einsteins, and Handy Manny!  Here he is standing up, and dancing!

Hollywood Studios was not our favorite park, a lot of the kids' activities were shows, which were AMAZING, but we wanted some RIDES!  So, we left Hollywood Studios at about 12:00, went back to the hotel for some lunch and a nap, and then went to EPCOT in the afternoon.  EPCOT was by far Jon and I's favorite park.  The rides were GREAT, and the food was even better!  They have these pavillions for all kinds of different countries (Canada, Mexico, China, Norway, France, Italy, etc), with these elaborate sets, and FOOD!  It was really neat.  The first night, we didn't really visit many of the pavillions, but we did do a lot of fun stuff:

Landon's favorite was "The Seas with Nemo and Friends" pavillion.  They had a REALLY neat ride where they had a HUGE aquarium, and they had animated Nemo/Dorie swimming in the aquarium with the real fish.  It was really cool.  After the ride you could go upstairs and see the whole aquarium, with dolphins, and sharks, and turtles, and rays, it was amazing.

In this picture, you can KIND OF see Nemo in the corner of the aquarium.  It was hard to get good pics of this, since flash pictures weren't allowed:

Here's Landon and I in front of the sign for the attraction:

Jon was SUPER excited to see the "big golf ball" that is iconic of EPCOT.  He said it was something he always wanted to see, but never thought he would.  So after we got a pic of him outside it, we went inside to ride Spaceship: Earth.  It was a really neat, slow-moving ride that took you through dioramas of Earth all throughout history.  It was one of our favorite rides, narrated by Judy Dench.

Jon in front of the big golf ball:

 

Spaceship Earth Dioramas:

We did a LOT more at EPCOT, but we didn't take pictures of EVERYTHING.  Jon and I rode Test Track, with Disney's awesome Parent Swap program.  With this program, one parent waits in line to ride a rid that their child is too short for, and then when they are done, the other parent gets to ride without waiting in line at all.  It made it really nice for us to be able to do some of the more grown-up attractions.  We also rode Mission:Space, a simulator of space flight, which made Jon motion sick. 

After a long day, the last thing we wanted to do was to go wait in line to eat at a restaurant (because it was always like a 2 hour wait if you didn't have reservations), so we got some Outback to go, and ate in our room.  Here's Landon enjoying his late night dinner:

All right, now I really do need to get back to the studying, but I will post some more great pics soon!

Just popping in...

Just popping in to say that I won't be popping in much for the next 2 weeks!  I know, I'm REALLY behind (I have pics from Halloween thru Thanksgiving to add here), but I have a final exam in lab tonight, an algebra exam tomorrow, a physiology quiz on Friday, a physiology exam on Monday, an algebra exam on Tuesday, an algebra final on the 12th, and a physiology final on the 16th.  So, as you can see, I've got NO time to be here, or anywhere but in a book for the next two weeks!  Lots of apologies!

Disney Magic Part 1

Okay, I have been VERY delinquent on posting new pictures and blogs.  It's been sort of a mad-house here, trying to catch up on school work, so I decided I will break up the Disney trip stuff into several posts...So, today's will be the first in the series.

Day 1:  Travel

We got up VERY early in the morning (5:30 am) in order to get to Nick's house and then to the airport.  Landon did really great on the airplane, and he even got to go into the cockpit with the captain and see all the buttons!  Of course, we all got a little nervous when Landon started saying "Landon push the button!"

In his seat, with his toys:

In the cockpit with the captain:

Our trip started out on a GREAT note, when a family getting ready to go home gave Landon two Mickey balloons that they couldn't take on the plane!  He was SUPER excited, and we were too, when we later found out said balloons cost $10 each!

Once we got to Orlando, we realized that our rental car company was NOT in the terminal as promised, so we had to lug all of our luggage onto a shuttle and over to the company...NOT fun.  But, it was quick and easy to get our car, and we headed off to our hotel, with the help of Nick's GPS.  It took us some time to understand the GPS, and the freeways in Florida, so it seemed to take FOREVER to get to our hotel, the Liki Tiki Village (how's that for a name?).  We got checked in and our room was AWESOME!  It had a full kitchen, master bedroom, huge bathroom, laundry room, dining room, and living room, with TWO flat screen TV's, and a jetted tub!  Not to mention the fully screened in lanai with gorgeous views of the woods!  Here's some pics of our room:

Kitchen:

Dining Room:

Living Room:

Bathroom:

Master Bedroom:

Jon, on our lanai:

Since it was only 6:45 pm when we got settled in, we decided to go to Downtown Disney for dinner, and to get a look around.  Downtown Disney is an AMAZING shopping/dining complex on Disney property.  They have EVERYTHING there, and I probably could have spent everything there, too!  There was a 40,000 sq foot Disney store!  Seriously!  40,000 sq feet!  It was AMAZING!  We got Landon his very own Mickey ears (the most expensive felt ever), and went to dinner at Emilio and Gloria Estevez's Cuban restaurant, Bongo's.  We got this cuban roasted half chicken that was to die for, but so was the price!  I guess that's what vacation is all about!  Afterwards, we walked around the shops, and Landon got SO excited when he saw the statues of the characters.  He HAD to give Mickey/Minnie kisses.  It was adorable!  And the Lego store had these AMAZING life-sized statues of dragons, and dinosaurs, and families.  It must have taken weeks to put them together.

Landon's ears:

The lego statues:

The character statues:

After dinner and shopping, we went back to the room to get a good night's sleep before heading to the parks the next day.  Landon had a BALL staring at himself in his Mickey ears, in the giant mirrors in the living room.  And it was SOOOOO nice to be able to put Landon to bed, and still hang out and talk/watch movies afterwards, which we can't normally do when we stay in hotels because we're all in the same room.

Okay, that's all I have time for, today, next time we'll get to the parks!

Some Big News, and Fun Facts.

 Before I start, you won't see much updating around here for awhile, because:

That's right!  We're going to Disney World!  I'm so excited, I can't stand it.  We went to Disneyland in California last year, but it just didn't live up to all of my Magical Memories from when I was a kid.  So, I finally talked Jon into taking us to Florida!  We'll be there from the 2nd-9th of November, and Landon and I are both so excited we can't stand it!  Landon keeps running around the house saying, "Go bye-bye, see Mickey, swim in the blue water!!!"  It's pretty darned adorable, if I do say so myself.  Of course, I did have to sweet talk Jon into it....

By promising him we could try for a new baby!

We FINALLY got approved for some RIDICULOUSLY expensive health insurance that actually covers maternity (albeit with a HUGE extra deductible), and as Laura would say, perfect practice makes perfect!  Jon's hoping we end up with a Disney baby (don't worry, our suite has separate bedrooms), and when I asked Landon what he wanted for Christmas, he said "Um, I need a baby Sister," which was pretty hilarious considering we hadn't told him anything about the new plan yet.  Guess he's spent enough time with his cousins to like the idea.

In the meantime, I have two exams and a quiz to take between now and Sunday, and I'm SUPER behind on them.  Since it feels like my priorities have been re-examined, it's getting VERY hard to keep up my motivation in school.  Of course, I HATE feeling like I don't know it all, so that helps a little bit.

Now, onto the fun facts!  Aryn posted this cute survey about our husbands, and since mine is pretty wonderful, I thought I'd do it to!

1. What is your husband's name? Jonathon 
2. How long have you been married? Almost 4 years
3. How long did you date? Just under 6 months from our first date to our wedding date.
4. How old is he? 26
5. Who eats more sweets? ME!
6. Who said I love you first? Jon
7. Who is taller? Jon
8. Who can sing the best? I don't think either one of us should quit our day jobs!
9. Who is smarter? I've got the book smarts, and Jon's got the real-world smarts.  Although, he's really impressed me this semester!  We both compliment each other, I think.
10. Who does the laundry? It used to be that he'd wash and I'd fold, but now that he's so busy at work, I do both!
11. Who pays the bills? Me!
12. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do, I don't like to sleep next to the door.
13. Who mows the lawn? Usually Jon.  I've done it twice, and both times it looked worse than when I started!
14. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? DEFINITELY NOT ME!  LOL.  Luckily, I married an amazing man who knows how stubborn I am, and likes me anyway!
15. Who kissed who first? Jon tried to kiss me on our first date, I only let him kiss my cheek.  On the second date, it was mutual.
16. Who asked who out first? Jon asked me out on my first day of work! 
17. Who wears the pants? Landon!  Once you have kids, you give up that role!  In reality, I'll steal a line from Aryn, we each wear a leg, it's pretty much 50/50 around here, although Jon's a sucker when I bat my eyes!
OK so there you have it! So if you read this, join in the fun and post it on your own blog so I can see what you have to say!

Sacrifices and Surprises.

It's often been said that the secret to life is compromise.  I must say, that it's certainly the secret to a good marriage.  Luckily for me, stubborn as I am, my husband is GREAT at compromising, and I love him more each time he does!

Likewise, I believe that the secret to good parenting is sacrifice.  In the beginning, we sacrifice sleep; glorious, peaceful, and worry-free sleep.  Later, we sacrifice all kinds of small, but very important, things, like our sense of good hygiene (let Mommy get that booger for you, or catch your vomit in my hands), some brain cells (one cannot speak in monosyllabic sentences for that long without suffering a vocabulary repression), some taste buds (look, those strained peas are really 'good'), some nerves (hence the reason our children are so often on our 'last one').  But perhaps the most important sacrifice we can make for our kids is our time.

There has been a lot of self-studying, and not-so-quiet reflection going on in our home, more specifically in my head.  I've realized recently that I'm often referring to these sacrifices that we make for our children, but that I wasn't really putting my money where my mouth is.  I wasn't willing to sacrifice the one thing that my child needed most, my time.  Specifically, the 8-12 years I would be spending in medical school and residency while my precious child is growing  up.  The more I thought I about it, the more if felt like I WAS sacrificing, but instead of sacrificing MYSELF, I was sacrificing my FAMILY for the sake of my professional aspirations.  It became clear to me that while I may get to be very successful at saving someone else's child, I could very easily fail at raising my own.  It occurred to me that my first priority has to be my child, and that it's time I step up to the plate like a "real Mom."

And then, a very surprising thing happened.  Once the seed of sacrifice was planted in my brain, even before I made any decisions, I began to notice real changes in my outlook, suddenly it didn't feel so much like I was sacrificing anything at all.  All of a sudden, I was, and am, finding joy in everyday tasks; in wiping runny noses, and kissing boo boo's, and even watching 'Nemo find his Daddy' for the 13th time this week.  I am finding the true, internal joy in this enigma that is Motherhood, and I find myself looking forward to tasks I once dreaded, even potty training, and learning to read!

So, once again, the path from here is unclear.  Whether I will go back to nursing, or try my hand at paramedics, or simply put medical school on hold until my kid(s) are graduated, and I'm the oldest student in class, I'm not sure.  What I am sure of is that right now, my home really DOES feel like the place I want most to be, and I find myself in the unusual position of NOT being at odds with myself.  I find myself joyful, and most importantly, and perhaps most surprisingly, I find myself at peace.

Tagged by Tiffany!

8's

8 Shows I love to watch:

-Grey's Anatomy

-ER

-Private Practice

-Criminal Minds

-Trauma: Life in the ER

-The Soup-Joel McHale ROCKS my world

-Code Blue

-Mystery ER

(notice a running theme, here?)

8 Favorite Restaurants:

-Tucano's

-Roman's Wings (Ohio)

-Bravo Cucina Italiana (Ohio)

-Outback Steakhouse

-Beto's...Rancherito's...whatever it's called

-Macaroni Grill

-Winger's

-Melting Pot--BEST dessert anywhere

8 Things that happened Yesterday:

-Drove to Gateway

-Bought a new MacBook

-Realized I'd have to RETURN said MacBook and exchange it for the 2.4

-Ate Tucano's for dinner...Mmmm!

-Had a Cookie Dough Hot Fudge Sundae for dessert at DQ

-Watched Ugly Betty

-I procrastinated physiology...AGAIN

-Stayed up all night with a little boy who's afraid of the dark all of a sudden.

8 Things I love about Fall:

-The colors against the mountains

-The fresh air

-The clothes (I LOVE sweaters)

-Pumpkin EVERYTHING (cookies, bread, cheesecake)

-Thanksgiving (hello, FOOD)

-Family...we seem to get together a lot more during the fall/winter

-The Weather

-New TV season

8 Things on my wish list:

-M.D. behind my name

-Jon and I's '69 Camaro dream car

-A happy, healthy Landon

-Losing weight...without the work (hey it is a wish list, right?)

-To be a better mother each day

-To know EVERYTHING I can about medicine

-To be a better wife each day

-More time to scrapbook!

8 Things I'm looking forward to:

-Finishing School

-The M.D.

-Practicing Medicine

-Growing really old and wrinkly with Jon

-Watching Landon grow up!

-A Disney WORLD vacation

-Holiday Baking

-Holiday Shopping!

8 People I Tag:

Anne, Sarah, Amanda, Camille, Annie, Aryn, Eden, Laurel!

The ABC's

My smart little guy has learned his ABC's!!! (well, most letters from G-Z, but still).  He has shown NO interest in it, and all of a sudden today started singing it!  I caught it on video, but I don't know how to rotate it so you'll have to bear with me on the sideways thing...Still learning.

In other news, I dyed my hair a reddish color, and Landon and I had a really fun photoshoot the other day...The pictures turned out REALLY CUTE considering I was taking the pics AND wrangling a cute (not-so) little Landon man!

And one more shout out..

To my totally awesome, absolutely amazing MOM!

My Mom had been saying for a couple of weeks that she was putting together a "Halloween Box" for Landon, and would put it in the mail soon.  So, when it arrived on Friday, Landon was already SUPER excited about his "treat."

What my Mom DIDN'T say, was that she was sending a "treat" for ALL of us!  The box was full of really great "home" stuff, just as I was starting to feel homesick again.  She sent Jon 2 bags of Pepperoni rolls, which are our FAVORITE Ohio snack.  They're made in a little Italian Bakery in Chardon, and you can't beat 'em!  She sent me my favorite Chocolate Coconut Bars that you can't find ANYWHERE anymore, except this one little bakery, and she sent me a pair of new PJ's featuring my high school mascot!

And Oh Boy, the treats she sent Landon.  There were new cars, and books, and coloring books, and pumpkin peeps, and a whole BUNCH of new clothes, including some REALLY cute Halloween PJ's.  She even made him his own photo book with all of the family from home so that he could carry them with him all the time, which he does!

I'm lucky to have a Mom like that, and Landon's lucky to have a Gee Gee who's so thoughtful and sweet!  What a great surprise, it definitely made my week!

Just for the record...

I just wanted to take a minute to make sure that everyone knows that I have an AMAZING husband.

Jon has always been a kind, considerate man, but lately he has just gone above and beyond to let me know he's on my side, and is always thinking about me.  He's brought home flowers several times since we've been back from Ohio, and helped with Landon, and cleaned the house, He bought me a new laptop, and camera, and surprised me with a fancy dinner out JUST BECAUSE I was having a bad day.   Then, on Monday, he volunteered to take my car for an oil change and he surprised me by having it COMPLETELY DETAILED while he waited (for over an hour on a work day).  

He just makes me feel so special and loved, and I can't believe how lucky I am to have him.  Agreeing to marry him was THE single best decision I've ever made.  I only pray I do just as well showing him how much he means to me.

Utah State Fair and other goings on...

This Saturday, we had the opportunity to go to the Utah State Fair with Dayne&Sarah, and their kiddos, and Anne and Granger, and their growing bean! We had a really great time!

By far, Landon's favorite activity was the giant yellow slide, which he got to ride twice, once with Mommy, and once with Daddy. His smiles and laughs were worth every penny, even if it was a pretty penny for those two rides!




He also rode the train with Mommy, and loved waving to Aunt Sarah, Brookie, Jackson and Daddy:


We were also able to see (and smell!) plenty of animals. Landon's favorite was the pigs (a true Southern boy for sure).


As a family:


Since Dayne's gotten here, the boys have been obcessed (VERY obcessed) with golfing, much to their wives' dismay. So, to appease the women, they bought a practice net for the backyard, so that they didn't have to go to the driving range all of the time. It's been fun for everyone, except maybe the neighbors, since it sounds like a shotgun blast when the fast-moving ball hits the net. Landon has been having a ball sticking his head through the hole, and being the bullseye!



And in continuing the nostalgia theme from my last post, Jon, Dayne and Granger were delighted to find some old, VERY TINY, lawn chairs in the garage, from when they were kids in California. And Landon appropriated one for his very own (it's the little things in life, ya know)!