Today’s post is part 2 of highlights from my family’s 8-day maximum-experience Disney vacation. I can’t believe we’ve been home almost a month already!
Seriously, Jim.
In front of Cinderella’s castle at the Magic Kingdom. That’s not a fake smile!
Today’s is part 1 of a 2-part post covering highlights from my family’s 8-day maximum-experience Disney vacation. And what a long, strange, WONDERFUL trip it was!
I thought I would be ‘Already Gone’ by the first day of this trip. But instead, for eight straight days, I had TONS of fun!
For “The Definitive Disney 10,” I will be covering 10 talking points from the 8-day Disney vacation my family took last August 20-27, in 2 separate posts. My overall goal? I don’t know, actually. Amusement? Sure. To inform? Perhaps!
Our Disney Vacation started today. How exciting!
Except for the dreaded day-before packing preparation. That’s usually the roughest part of the trip, right?
One suitcase small enough to avoid checks, plus one carry-on bag. L-R: S4, me, S12. Mike hadn’t packed at this point yet, but he will use one duffel carry-on bag and whatever room is left in our big suitcase that contains all the evil “liquids” not allowed on the plane. I prepaid $25 to check that bag today via Jetblue.com. I also printed all of our boarding passes already! You can do so up to 24 hours in advance with Jetblue.
Wrong! At 11 pm last night, I was sitting in bed, done with all my travel tasks, already relaxing and writing. This was on the day before we left for an 8-day vacation some 1,000 miles from home, with my entire nuclear family in tow. I must have been in quite a good place, preparation-wise, amirite?
I want to shout it from the rooftops. YES!
This week, I am reviewing children’s book The Day That A Ran Away, written by B.C.R. Fegan and illustrated by Lenny Wen.
The inside-the-book title page of The Day That A Ran Away
I really should have been a poet. Ha!
For book review #9 back in March, I reviewed the just-about-to-drop for the first time, super-cute children’s book Don’t Ever Look Behind Door 32 written by B.C.R. Fegan and illustrated by Lenny Wen, which focuses on the numbers 1-32 in a cheerfully-spooky-but-not-scary hotel setting. And now next month, the duo will be releasing yet another children’s book, this one featuring letters and the alphabet, titled The Day That A Ran Away. This newest Fegan-Wen tale is set in both a school classroom as well as the wilds of a little boy’s imagination. Or is it?? 🤔😎 Continue reading
For my tenth book review, I will be reviewing self-help book 365 Days of Happiness by Jacqueline Pirtle.
I was today years old when I heard a perfect two-word description of my personality, and I can’t wait to shout it from the rooftops (or write it in a blog post).
To all ye who read this, I hereby proclaim Jill V to forevermore be referred to as…
A Cynical Optimist.
What?
A cynical optimist. Or what Urban Dictionary says:
Das me!!
Welcome to “Ranking the Eagles,” a six-part blog series o’ mine. Here, I will rank all 6 Eagles albums from the 1970s from worst to best, as well as the songs on said albums. All rankings are based on my opinions only! Don’t expect my lists to mirror Rolling Stone Magazine or the like, as I have VERY different tastes than the mainstream. Which makes writing (and hopefully reading) these posts much more fun, amirite?
Above: My Favorite Eagles lineup (1976-1977), L-R: Joe Walsh, Randy Meisner, Don Henley, Glenn Frey, Don Felder
I am back with yet another book review,
for Don’t Ever Look Behind Door 32!
Not bad, eh?
My brutally honest co-reviewer.
For book review #9, I received an adorable picture book that looked like a perfect read-aloud for my youngest daughter, S3. I decided to review the story organically, and read it to S3 as part of our nightly bedtime ritual one night last month. Titled Don’t Ever Look Behind Door 32, the book is authored by B.C.R. Fegan, and illustrated by Lenny Wen.
Don’t Ever Look Behind Door 32 is a picture book, written in verse, that contains a big-time focus on numbers and counting. Right away, the numeracy focus absolutely thrilled my inner elementary math AIS teacher, I have to say! Continue reading
The cover of Jorie and The Magic Stones
Welcome to my first children’s chapter book review! For my eighth book review, I had the pleasure of reading the story of Jorie and the Magic Stones, an intermediate-elementary level adventure-fantasy chapter book. And what a great story it was! While I am pretty darn far from the book’s target childhood-age demographic, I am still certain young readers will enjoy the story as much as I did! Plus, I have elementary teacher cred. Us teachers know good children’s literature when we read it, trust me. And Jorie and the Magic Stones happens to be just that: good children’s literature. I recommend reading it without hesitation.
Jorie and the Magic Stones can be described as part fantasy, part adventure, and nonstop fun from start to finish! A page-turner from chapter 1 to 43, in two days’ time, I had finished the book in its entirety. And THAT is the mark of a engaging story in my world. The teacher, parent, blogger, writer, and reviewer in me unanimously recommends this book, especially to young adventure-fantasy loving readers, from the ages of 8 to around age 12. Continue reading
This week, I am pleased to host guest blogger Jen Sanders of BalticWonder.com. This week’s post topic concerns a certain ‘rite of passage’ experienced by both babies and, indirectly, their caregivers: Teething!
Teething is tough, and not just on us mamas! When caring for a teething baby, seeking safe, effective relief for a suffering little one is typically at the forefront of a parent’s mind. Your heart breaks at baby’s cries. Frequently, both you and baby sleep much less. Ultimately, both you and baby need some help!
In today’s post, Jen will be discussing numerous ways to aid in coping with the teething process, for babies as well as their parents. One such coping aid discussed here is the use of Baltic Amber teething necklaces, currently available for purchase at BalticWonder.com! Continue reading
Let’s not go there, shall we?
For my big 4-0, Mike and I had tossed around the idea of doing something different than our usual go-to weekend activities. Something special. Just the two of us. ALONE.
First and foremost, thank heavens for grandparents. Big shout out to Grandpa H and Grandma B for their willingness to take our little ladies for an overnight.
And we’re off!
Obviously, Mike and I jumped (for joy) at the opportunity to have one whole day and night just to ourselves. But where to go? Our discussions frequently referenced the idea of celebrating in a novel, preferably non-home-esque setting. Maybe even with a pre-arrangement of evening activities that diverged from our standard “out to dinner, then home and Netflix and chill.”
And no, I’m not being saucy. Really, Mike and I watch Netflix, chill, and finally pass out in bed shortly after the movie or comedy show commences. We’re forty, remember? Continue reading