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The Anti-Resolution Craze

Posted on January 4, 2009 1:15 pm by TheAngelForever

Now that 2009 is here, many people are once again filling their lives with resolutions. Resolutions are wonderful, but the truth is so many of us let them go months/weeks/days into the new year. So why do we do them? My guess is a lot of it is thanks to peer pressure. No, that is not something that goes away after our teen years. It still exists as an adult and even when we are parents.

This year I am not making any resolutions. Instead, I am making life changes. I want to go back to healthier living. This includes being aware of what I am eating. Making a conscious effort to eat more fruits and veggies and less junk food. If I am hungry, carrot sticks and hummus are a great snack with lots of fiber to fill me up. I will also be sure that I drink lots of water (my main beverage of choice anyway). Of course the item that I am most guilty of is not exercising enough. WiiFit and I need to become more friendly with each other. It is not good that it asks about me and if I stil exist when hubby uses it. Seriously, it really does and it has gotten annoying. Of course I am not simply going to step it up thanks to a machine mocking me.

Having something to look forward to, and being more healthy for my kids is a huge motivator. By starting this now and working on things I could lose 20-30 pounds by the time we go to Disney World. That would be amazing and I like the sound of it. Of couse, I need to drop a lot more weight than that, but it would be a fabulous start.

On that note, I leave you with a link to TechyDad’s fun new Anti-Resolutions for 2009. You will laugh and love them, so please stop by and check them out. Oh and let me know if you are going to write some yourself.

Categories:
decisions jl me moments vent

After 8 years…we are going back

Posted on December 31, 2008 10:28 am by TheAngelForever

Categories:
decisions Disney looking back travel vacation Wordless Wednesday

Disney Dreaming

Posted on December 30, 2008 9:39 am by TheAngelForever

Yesterday I hinted that we had finally decided to take a plunge and go on a big family vacation with the boys. Sure, we have gone on little trips here and there. We have gone to visit my brother and his family, long weekends to visit JL’s parents, and even a few mini-vacations to see friends and go to Sesame Place and Hershey Park. Still it was never more than a few days, and we have never taken the boys on an airplane.

While those little get aways from here were wonderful at the time, secretly I have been longing to go to another destination. I guess I need to admit something. My parents helped me to become a Disney World junkie while growing up. From the time I was JSL’s age to when I was in college, I went to Disney World at least five times. I remember when EPCOT was opened, Animal Kingdom was fresh and hardly had anything in it. . . . and have stayed at many different Disney resorts. JL and I even went there on our honeymoon in 2001. That was the last time we have been to Florida. The last time JL and I went away on a longer vacation was in December 2002. That was our trip to Las Vegas. During that trip I suspected I was pregnant, and it was confirmed several days later.

NHL is now 5 and JSL will be 2 in May. Pair that with fabulous deals that have been extended by Disney to lure people into their parks.

Some of you are probably asking, "What about your Chicago Dreaming?" Although I would love to go to BlogHer in July, the call of Disney is much stronger. I would guess that I will not be attending, but you never know.

I think JL was shocked when I mentioned giving up the BlogHer trip for Disney World, but he soon understood. We began pricing it out. Right now Disney World has a deal that if you stay 4 days at a Value Resort you get 3 days free! At first we were silly and talking about driving to Florida. Then we had a reality check. If you factor in all of the additional time on the road (at least 20 hours each way), hotels going/coming home, gas, and wear on the car it really was not a savings. We can book a flight be there by noon on Saturday and have 6 1/2 days of Disney imersion.

Now for a dilemma. JSL will actually turn 2 during our trip there. According to the one travel agent we could technically take him on our lap and save money. FAA regulations state that a child under 2 has this option. I got antsy and called the airline that we are going to go with (they have non-stop 2 hour and 50 minute flights to Orlando). The person on the line was a little stumped. There was no real answer that she could find. In the end, she said that they now check birth certificates of children under 2 at the gates. If he is two for the return trip, they would require a ticket to be within FAA requirements. If we take a chance and do not book for both ways, I am afraid of what could happen coming home. Just my luck the plane would be booked and he would not be allowed home, or they would charge us $400 for one way.

So for those of you who have traveled with a child that is almost two, how bad is it to have them on your lap? Should we just buy him a ticket for both ways and not worry about being squished or having an antsy toddler on our lap? Any thoughts and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

At this point I believe we will be staying at the Disney All Star Movie resort and once we have reservations can start booking times for meals since they get snatched up quickly. We will likley book things this trip later today since we are afraid of the cheaper flights going and the hotel not having the buy 4 get 3 room rates left when we want to go.

Thanks for any pointers on traveling via plane with children, this is a new adventure for us after being parents for almost six years.

Categories:
decisions Disney fun travel vacation

Eight fun filled nights

Posted on December 29, 2008 9:50 am by TheAngelForever

Although the last night of Chanukah is bitter sweet, I still love it.

Watching all of the candles burning is one of the most beautiful sights. It makes you think about the true meaning of the miracle behind the Festival of Lights.

We had a very nice Chanukah. The boys made out very well. If I had to guess, NHL’s favorite gift was probably the fact that I allowed him to use the Nintendo DS Lite that I had won earlier this year. He has two games that are perfect for his age and he loves them.

JL and I both love that the boys have their own Doodle Pros, so they do not fight over the small one that we had. Even JL got in on the act of doodling a page from JSL favorite new Sandra Boynton book.

Thanks to Hebrew School and Barenaked Ladies, NHL knew all of the blessings for lightning the candles. He loved signing them and then patiently waited for a small gift each night. The boys were so sweet and always tried everything, whether it was playing with a Super Grover car, checking out a new book, or playing with a barrel of monkeys.

Another item that will keep them entertained for years to come are the Chanukah finger puppet. I found these at the craft store. Both of the boys have enjoyed using them.

JL and I opted not to exchange gifts this Chanukah. We decided we wanted to save for our first official family vacation. This weekend I believe we finalized what it will be since there are amazing deals to this location. News coming soon!

Categories:
decisions holidays jsl nhl photos play time travel vacation

Chicago dreaming

Posted on November 30, 2008 10:59 am by TheAngelForever

Yesterday I really started to wonder if going to Chicago this summer was possible. Why do I want to go to Chicago? This is the reason:

The last two years I sat at my computer watching as bloggers from all over documented their fun at the BlogHer convention. The first year I had just given birth and was a newbie at blogging myself. Last year I wanted to go, but traveling all the way to San Francisco was not very practical. Chicago is a completely different story. Not only are there a lot of flights that way, but driving could be possible.

While out yesterday, I mentioned to hubby that I really wanted to try to go. I looked at flights. Of course booking this far out showed $400 options, which is insane! Then I thought about making it a family destination. I looked and sure enough there is a Six Flags in Chicago and we have those season passes that are good there!

Hmmm. . . .

It really made me think about the possibility of things to do in Chicago and places to stop and see on the way there and back home from BlogHer. There are SO many things that we could do, it is actually mind boggling. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. By next summer the boys will be almost 6 and just 2.

Update: This morning hubby informed me that he was pricing things out last night when I went to bed. He thinks that it may not be a bad option to make this into a family trip. In fact, he was also Tweeting about it to see if other families would be heading out to the BlogHer destination for vacations together. So if anyone is thinking of doing this please let me know.

This week I will be heading to AAA to pick up driving options to Chicago from here. I have heard that it is at least a 14-18 hour drive. We could certainly split it up and make it work with desination stops to see new places that we have never visited.