by Sarah | Aug 13, 2015 | All About Denver, All About Family, All About Kennedy, All About Me, All About Molly, All of Us, Blogging Life, Disney, Make-A-Wish, Redefining Perfect
As if it wasn’t clear yet by my bevy of posts – we had an amazing time at Disney and Universal in Florida. I have only scratched the surface of the stories to tell, and best we’re going back in a couple of months to make some new stories.
However, for all the wonder and fun we had, there were a few hiccups in the road.
Our first few days, the three final days of October, were gorgeous. Beautiful weather. Low 70’s, sunny, low humidity. Just flat out amazing.
Then November 1st dawned.
A high of 47 degrees and strong winds. I mean, strong.
So we put on our jeans and returned to Universal for our last day with one thing in mind…well, for Erik and I.
The one ride we’d missed on our first day. The Rip Ride Rockit Roller Coaster. Erik had been intimidated by it, but after a few days of roller coasters, he was ready to try the intimidating coaster.
Yeah.
Remember that detail about the weather?
Strong winds?
The ride was closed. Because of the high winds, and the intense height of the coaster, it wasn’t safe to run that day.
Of course we still had plenty of fun that day, but we were sorely disappointed that we’d missed this ride.
And yes, we’ve already said that the first ride we go on this year is the Rip Ride Rockit. We aren’t chancing another turn in the weather.
by Sarah | Aug 11, 2015 | All About Molly, All of Us, Blogging Life, Redefining Perfect, Top Ten Tuesday
Definitely time to get my kids on my top ten. I’m going to start with Molly this time around because – well, luck of the draw. 😀
Molly is the middle girl, and unique in so many ways.
She’s a challenge, and yet makes life ultimately fun.
Her heart is as big as anything, and we treasure every moment with her, even when she’s making us pull our hair out with some of her quirks.
So here is my top ten list about Molly, our little alligator (that’s aggilator to us)
1. She’s an artist. Most of the time you can find her bent over a piece of paper, drawing her favorite My Little Pony characters (Fluttershy is her favorite, by the way). And most of all? She’s really good. I envy her talent.
2. Literal. Not to be stereotypical or anything…but MAN is this girl literal about everything. You have to be careful what you say, because she will take you completely to heart.
3. Every O’clock. This is one of the quirks that has come up this summer. Perhaps because she’s counting down the time until school, or maybe it has nothing to do with that, I don’t know…but she has to see every o’clock. If she misses it, she is bothered and watches extra close for the next one, even cheering when she sees it. Now, let’s just hope this doesn’t mess her up during the school year.
4. Model Dreams. A few years back I posted about Molly’s dreams of being a model. She still holds onto that dream, and I can still see her achieving it.
5. Seriously, those eyes. 
She got those eyes from her daddy, and they are stunning. To this day they maintain that ice blue from her baby days into today. Just gorgeous.
6. Perches. I don’t know how this started or why, but Molly doesn’t ever…well, sit. She perches. On her feet, knees up. I was asked to not let her wear skirts to school because of this (or put shorts under them). Somehow it makes her feel comfortable. I’m sure she’ll eventually grow out of it, but for now it’s her thing.
7. Blind Love. No matter what, now matter who, no matter anything…Molly loves blindly. Once you’re in her circle, she will always love you and never forget you (I do mean never, mind like a steel trap). Her heart is so big and dear.
8. Comics. This goes along with her art thing…she makes her own comics. She draws the cells and writes the funnest, most unique stories I’ve seen.
9. My Little Pony. She is all about the ponies. That is all.
10. Conquering Fears. Molly has a lot of fears that compete with her dreams. She loved horses, but was afraid of climbing on top of one that stood so very tall…in the end, she sucked in her fear and climbed into the saddle. At Disney ALL the rides terrified her. With some encouragement and me by her side she eventually rode the Dumbo Flying Elephant ride, and then managed to get through Soaring (all tied to her supreme fear of heights). She has already said next time we go to Disney she is going to try a roller coaster, and more rides! She may take a gentle nudge, but that girl pushes her limits and finds so much fun.
And that is my big girl Molly. I can’t begin to encapsulate her in 10 items, but it was a start. She’s my Molly, my gator, my big, unique, beautiful girl.
by Sarah | Aug 6, 2015 | All About Denver, All About Erik, All About Family, All About Kennedy, All About Me, All About Molly, All of Us, Blogging Life, Disney, Make-A-Wish, Redefining Perfect
For two of the kids there was one park that was a hands-down favorite.
Epcot.
Molly absolutely loved the world showcase. Perhaps because there weren’t any rides she was too afraid to go on. She loved seeing the different countries and meeting the Princesses in their areas.
Denver loved the rides (and is mad, like me, that we totally missed a few), and the world showcase was top notch for him. He liked exploring and seeing all the different things to offer. His biggest regret is that we missed the one Disney Princess he would have agreed to get a picture with – Mulan.
But, what we all loved, unanimously, best about Epcot is situated right in France.
It has been my favorite place since my first trip to Epcot, and remains so today. I cannot wait to go back, and plan on budgeting a bit more money for more sweets than last time. They were so good, and I could totally bring them back with me to the villa. 😉
We bought four whole desserts last time, and scarfed every single one of them down. The favorite was, of course, the macarons. Light, airy, and so packed with flavor in every bite. I think I ended up with the vanilla, while the kids got the blueberry, raspberry and chocolate.
I think the kids and I totally ignored lunch that day and just pigged out on desserts. Poor diabetic hubby didn’t get to share in the joy as much, and was disappointed that all of their sandwiches had sauces (he doesn’t like sauce on his sandwiches). But, he satisfied himself with other treats as we were there during the food and wine festival.
Anyway, we’re already prepping our menu for next time, and seeing as my parents will be with us, it’s going to be quite a to-do, I’m sure. I might even actually get a sandwich this time, there were so many that looked good…but really, the whole point in going there is for the desserts. I can snack all day in Epcot, but here I get serious and sit down and really dive into the sweets.
by Sarah | Jul 24, 2015 | All About Molly, All of Us, Autism, Blogging Life, Friday Feels, Redefining Perfect, Special Needs
Molly had a stellar year at school this year. Top notch, best on record.
Her grades were through the roof awesome, she jumped ahead in math and managed to get an angle on language arts and push forward.
Life was pretty good.
Then, came the end of that.
Fresh off the bus on the last day of school the first thing she said was, “I want to go back to school.”
See, Molly doesn’t handle change well at all.
She doesn’t handle the loss of a routine well.
So despite the leaps and bounds made during the school year, we have had a very difficult summer.
Molly is struggling.
Not sleeping on several occasions (like, at all).
Behavioral issues, despite taking her medicine nearly every day.
Anger, silence, uncontrollable laughing.
Enough to concern us.
And enough to make us look forward to the start of school in a few weeks.
I hate seeing her struggle and not knowing what to do for her.
I can only hope that the return to a routine and school, where she loves to be, will bring her back into focus.
Now if I could just get over the fact that she’s going into middle school….
by Sarah | Jul 17, 2015 | All About Denver, All About Erik, All About Family, All About Kennedy, All About Me, All About Molly, All of Us, Blogging Life, Friday Feels, Redefining Perfect
When I was growing up I wanted nothing more than to be older.
I wished away every year, wanting to be a little older so I could do one thing or another.
So I could stop being a baby.
Nowadays time is flying by way too fast. I blink and half a year is gone. I take a nap and it’s been almost a year since we went to Disney.
I take a deep breath and my baby boy is not just a teenager, but an Eagle Scout destined to graduate in just a heartbeat.
Because a heartbeat is all it’s going to take.
A heartbeat and the girls are teens.
A heartbeat more and they are grown.
I want to put a pin in so many moments.
Hold onto them tight and let them pass slower.
Meanwhile my girls are wishing their lives away as I once did.
“I can’t wait for school to start” – just days after the last day of school.
“I can’t wait until I can drive.”
“I wish I was seventeen.”
“I wish…”
“I wish…”
I wish it would stop.
For just a few minutes.
To let me breathe it in.
To make this one heartbeat last a few minutes longer.
Or a lifetime.
by Sarah | Jul 16, 2015 | All About Denver, All About Family, All About Kennedy, All About Me, All About Molly, All of Us, Disney, Make-A-Wish, Redefining Perfect
For 90% of our visit to Orlando last year, we were blessed beyond belief weather-wise. Despite Orlando’s proclivity for random rain showers, we weren’t rained on once. We took ponchos with us every day, and blessedly never had to use them.
We did, however, have to use our jeans and jackets–but that’s another story for another time.
Our first full day in Orlando was spent at Universal, most of it in the Islands of Adventure. The weather was the most perfect we could have hoped for. Sunny, but not hot or too humid. We were comfortable in shorts and tee’s, hiking through the park didn’t overtax us.
Still, about two hours in, we spotted the first water ride. It was one of the white water rafts, where we knew we’d get…a little wet. Molly was opposed to getting wet, but we convinced her it wouldn’t be so bad…(are we bad to be such liars 😉 )
Popeye & Bluto’s Bilge Rat Barge was the winner for our first water ride. They offered ponchos, but we scoffed saying ponchos were for chumps. I think my exact words were, “Who goes on a water ride and wears a poncho?”
For a good portion of the ride, our side of the boat escaped the worst of the impact of the water and we thought we were safe–but no one is safe on the barge. By the end we came off dripping.
Soaked.
Right down to the bone.
Of course, when you get off any water ride, Universal has these dryers in place. People dryers.
We stared at them, and down at our soaked clothes, and back at the dryers. We debated for a long time as people were using the set we were considering.
After much debate ad hemming and hawing, we decided to go ahead and use them. Two and three of us at a time, at $5 a pop, we hopped in. Dried off, mostly and went about our business.
Further down the line we came to the flume ride, Dudley Do-Right’s Ripsaw Falls. This one had a HUGE drop that excited Kennedy to no end. Molly and Denver? Not so much…they wanted to beg off the ride, so we let them. Erik and I thought “Well, we just dried off, but surely we can’t get as wet on this ride as we did on the barge.”
Oh were we wrong.
The ride is long, you keep thinking the big drop is coming, but it doesn’t. You get soaked along the way by spraying water, twists and turns, and evil people on the bridge spraying water guns at you. By the time you get to the drop, you know what’s coming. We were sitting near the front so we were way more soaked the some further back.
We got off lamenting the wasted $$ at the drying pods, and totally ignored the pods at the end of this ride and went about our day preferring to let the sun and light breeze dry us.
So needless to say by the time we made it to the Jurassic Park River Adventure we were still damp and figured we couldn’t lose. Once again, Molly and Denver said “Nope” to the flume ride and positioned themselves near the end of the ride to see us emerging.
Wouldn’t you know–when we got off that ride, we were drier than Denver and Molly? Those two buffoons decided it was GREAT fun to stand in the splash zone at the end of the ride and get flat-out doused by every flume that came over the edge.
So, needless to say our first day at the parks was our wettest day (especially since we ended up missing on one particular ride at Disney, which is, as I said, another story for another day).
But it sure was fun.
Waterlogged in Florida isn’t such a bad thing, after all.
A high of 47 degrees and strong winds. I mean, strong.
