California Adventure

Friday, June 4th~It is our first full day at Disneyland and we decide to spend the day at California Adventure. I loved it there. Just for the fact that it was all new to me and something to explore~

Against my better judgement, I was coerced into going on the California Screamin'. At blast off you'll go from 0-55 mph in 4.7 seconds. Twists and turns with a 108 foot drop ( at which point I freely admit to swearing at the top of my lungs) and an upside down loop through Mickey's ears! I still do not understand why people get a thrill out of having their stomach drop to their feet.....because I do not. Nope. Not even one little bit. But I bit the bullet and went on this for the sake of not being called a "wussy". Yes, I succumbed to peer pressure. Now, move on.

From there we decided to go on Mickey's Fun Wheel. Ok.....misrepresentation of that name, that's for sure! There were two types of gondolas. The stationary that do not rock and the swinging gondolas slide back and forth along the spokes of the wheel. If you are prone to motion sickness and or scared of heights.....run away. Which is what I should have done. At the moment our car got to a certain point, the car slid along the rail and I was so dang scared! It rocked and slid and I wanted off! The only saving grace was there were two young girls in the car with us who were just as scared as I was.....misery loves company. And of course, Breanne wanted to rock and slide the car even more so than it already was. Like the screamng and near tears wasn't enough of a thrill for her!

Onward to Toy Story mania! A cool ride where you sit in a car and shoot at targets. I loved that. Must have been the gamer in me coming thru! What, who got high score you say? Oh yeah, that would be ME!!!

We meandered over to Ariel's Grotto to have a great lunch in the bar. Well, initially, we wanted to have lunch with the princesses but the 38 dollar price tag convinced us to go to the bar instead. Good choice! Great food, great drinks. I even got a multi colored light up plastic ice cube in mine. Ah, ambiance.

This day Shellie and I discovered tiaras and felt we were worthy of wearing them. Everywhere we looked we saw little princesses dressed in full regalia (seriously, they were everywhere!) so we decided we wanted to be princesses as well. So be it. They stayed on all day and onto the next as well.
When in Disneyland.........

Disney continued.....

In my dejected state of Disney closing for grads, I relunctantly meandered back down main street. No easy feat this, as thousands of people were doing the same. Pretty sure I saw tears. Oh wait, maybe those were mine.

We proceeded en masse like lemmings and headed to Downtown Disney. Lots and lots of cool stuff, if we could see it through the kajillions of bodies that also wanted to make the moment last.

Michelle and I decided that a caramel apple would be just the trick to boost our dejectedness. You know where this is going......

We have the candy/bakery store in sight. We move towards it. Just as the employee on the other side is also moving towards the door......to CLOSE up. Noooooooooooo!

Oh yes. She got there first.

They were closed. And the caramel apples seemed to taunt us from the inside. " Not tonight ladies, we are safe from you tonight!"

We walk away (I might have stomped) and half heartedly feigned interest in the other stores. When we came back to the candy store, we noticed some people had opened the door and walked in! What!?!? I caught Michelle's eye and we both booked for the door! YES! ! !

We made it! I kept expecting the candy police to come over to us, announce our intrussion and politely kick us out. With smiles on their faces, of course.

But no, they sent someone to the door to lock it. Smart moves folks, shoulda thought of that last time! Buwhahahhaaa.

We got our treats. We were happy. And if your thinking "it takes so little". ..you are right.

And thank goodness for that.

Before we left, I researched a few things and discovered that there is "tradition" that happens at Disneyland that I never knew about.

Pin Trading.

The employees wear these lanyards that have Disney pins attached. The deal is ,if you want a pin they have on this lanyard, you must first give them a Disney pin to exchange. Disney pins all have this mouse eared black backing and it must be a Disney pin.

Ok, sounds fun enough. So I went to Ebay ( don't you judge me) and bought 15 pins ( all certifiable of course) for 25 bucks. This lady was selling her collection. Cool! I'm in!

So I doled out the pins to Breanne and Michelle and Shellie to trade. I have to admit, it was fun to do! I found myself eye balling employees to see if they any cool pins I wanted. And they did! And the best part? They can't refuse! Unless it's not a disney pin!

I had no problem approaching an employee with a gleam in my eye and point blank asking them to show me their pins. I discovered that if they wore a green lanyard, then only kids could exchange with them. Dang it. ( If they have a grad night, why can't they have an Adult only night?)

This prompted many fun conversations with cast members. Where one got us second row seats to the Aladdin show (! which was an amazing production!) and one got me some interesting info on pins. Some are limited editions, some are only when a certain trip is booked, some when an occasion is to be celebrated etc etc. What a great marketing plan this idea was! The pins start at 6.95 and go up to 20 dollars or so. They even have lanyard sets to buy with your favorite characters and or movie. I bought one pin that had Bambi AND Thumper on it so I could actually get TWO pins for it, smart huh? That's how I roll.

At one point, I had to tell the cast member " Nothing personal, but you don's have what I want".

Which got quite the smirk.

Yes indeedy, that was a fun thing to participate in. I might have my own lanyard with 12 pins on it. Maybe.

One limited edition one too. Maybe.

Don't you judge me.

To be continued..............

Disneyland!!!

Sooo, I might have started my vacation a little too soon in the airport bar.
I was just happily going along with the rest of the gang and getting a celebatory drink before we boarded. Little did I know that I was getting a double shot of Patron in my happy little strawberry margarita. But my body knew. In about 20 seconds flat after the first sip. Yeah, I provided the entertainment for the next 20 minutes. Not gonna lie.
Think I might have fallen asleep for just a minute before we left the runway. And I do not sleep on planes. Hate to fly. Hate it. Pretty much because I usually end up with one gigantic boob by the time we deplane. Such fun.
Fast forward to the Fairfield Marriot hotel. Not a bad hotel. Nothing extraordinary but it served the purpose. I thought the lime and lemon filled water dispensers they had by the elevator was a lovely touch.
Turns out, it wasn't. Why do I have such a problem with other states/countries water?!?!? Oh yeah, thank you Mexico. ( another story entirely)
The hotel was a half mile from Disneyland. ( I google-mapped it) Not bad. But not fun in the heat we had either. I went from a wet and cold 54 degrees (if I am being generous) to a hot and hotter 80 something. No time to adapt.
We were so excited to get into Disneyland Thursday night. Ok, maybe that was me.
I just wanted to get to the Plaza Inn so I could get some dinner and then people watch. I should have known something was up when I got my amazing fried chicken dinner and found a table outside. Oh, and just in time for the parks fireworks display too! Ooooh!!
Wait? Doesn't that mean the park is closing? Uhm, yeah. It was. I sat down at 8:30 to eat and the park closed at 9 for "Grad Night". Seriously?!? No waaaayy. I just walked a mile to get here!
I wasn't even greedy when the gal offered me an additional piece of chicken! Now I know why she did.
Dang it. ( to be continued)

Disneyland, Here we come!

Right now, the countdown is at 9 days.

Nine days until I am IN Disneyland with Breanne, Shellie and Michelle!

I decided to take Breanne to get away and have some fun. The last time I was there was about, oh, 16 years ago? I am so due.

No children, no men. just us women. Doing what we want, when we want and how we want.

That means Teacup rides with no men rolling their eyes at us. And if your a man reading this, you know your rolling your eyes right now!

I gotta hecka deal for us~ airfare and hotel ( Fairfield Marriot) was a mere $317. How could I resisit? Of course, Vegas was my first choice but the money seems to fly out the wallet a little ( ok, a LOT) quicker there. So it's off to Walt's fun land for us. I checked the forecast and the weather is a wonderful 75-90 degree variance. Let's see, can I live with that?

I can live with that.

Do I have red and white polka dotted clothing to take with me? So I can look like Minnie?

Oh, I know you think I do! But, I don't. If alcohol was allowed, then it might be do-able.

Not gonna lie, actually thinking of buying a pen shaped like a flask.

(If you work at Disney, I want it known that I never actually said that I was going to take it INTO Disneyland, now did I? Or, for that matter, never said I bought it either.

Just a disclaimer.)

I bought this package on ebay from an employee there that gave me all kinds of tips for my stay there. 5 bucks bought me some great advice! I asked Michael to print it out for me. He called me and said, "um, no. you won't be getting that printed". What? Why?

Because it was 277 pages long! Great deal for 5 bucks!

Did I hit up ebay and buy some disney limited editions pins for us to trade with employees there? M A Y B E......Don't you judge me! Like I said, free to be total dorks on this vacation!

Looking forward to laughing and walking our butts off. ( Wouldn't it be so cool to actually be able to DO that?)

Watch out Minnie, Ariel, Nemo.....here we come!

Giant Clam Shells

For years now I have lusted after the Giant Clam Shell.

I must have one.

And I am not ready to give up my quest. So, I turn to you in search of one.

Do you know what I am talking about...the humongeous clam shell that someone had in their backyard or inside their home?

I used to know someone who had one everywhere I looked. Problem was, I was 12 and could have cared less about the couple who came from the Phillipines and threw these things in their backyard. Didn't they realize they were on Washington and not on the islands anymore?

Oh what I would give to have one of those now.

They are available, don't misunderstand.

For a price. A pretty price. Roughly around 200 dollars not including the same in shipping costs. I don't want one that bad. Ok, maybe I do but I cannot justify spending the money.

And by justify I mean part with.

But I know that I would give one a wonderful home and it would be cherished until the day it died. Oh wait, it's already a goner, so that doesn't fly. Nevertheless, I would cherish it.

Why do I want one so?

I really couldn't tell you. I just know I have been obssessed with them for the longest time now. I currently have "faux" ones around the pool area and I like them and all, but.....

they are no substitute for the real gems of the sea.

I attribute it to my genetics.

Yeah, that's it.

Somewhere deep down inside, the Islander in me is longing for a giant clam shell because my ancestors were surrounded by them.

So I plead with you all, if you have a connection, know someone, know where one can be easily "borrowed" ( did I just condone stealing??)

or whatnot, to let me know.

Because I fear the obsession is just picking up pace. And I don't know where this may end.

Probably with a trip to Florida.

Oh, one can hope.

Mother's Day

For the longest time now, Mother's Day has always had one special memory for me. It was at a time when my mother and mother in law were still alive ( wait for it, this is not going where you think it is) and I had decided that, dog gone it, I had had enough. You see, for those of you who don't know, my mother was French and a tough nut and my mother in law was German and a tough nut. I am being kind.
So I decided that I was going to celebrate ME one Mother's day and I booked a trip for the four of us to Disneyland. Yep, you read right. I was selfish. I totally admit it now. But then, it was just a means of escape to celebrate a day for me and no one else. And what a wonderful Mother's Day it was. With extreme clarity, I can still see Mitchell standing at the gates of Tune Town. Where he stopped before entering, and said " Isn't it beautiful.....?" With awe. Now mind you, he was 6 at the time. I will never forget that moment. I admit I did not really grasp how it might pain Mike's mom to not be included. (We took her another year. There, that makes up for it, doesn't it?) My mom? I don't think she cared one bit. But I don't know. She wasn't ever the touchy feely type of person and did I mention she was French? Recently I heard someone describe the French to be like coconuts. Tough on the outside but sweet on the inside. Someone forgot to tell my Mom that.
Anyway, it was a wonderful Mother's Day for me. Just me and mine.
This Mother's Day I have a new memory to place above this one. Mitchell graduated from Gonzaga University in Spokane. So Michael , Breanne and I ( and Squishy, can't forget him) took a road trip to Spokane and had a wonderful 36 hours! We got to Mitchs' and took him to Costco where we bought food for the dinner we were all making after the graduation. Us, and everyone else, it would seem. But then again, when is Costco ever not jammed on a Saturday? We had dinner that night at the Wild Sage Bistro. Turns out, Loius' dad was on the plane to come visit Louis in Spokane when the woman next to him suggested he try Wild Sage. He went and then told Mitch. And I thank him for that. The food was wonderful. I have not had a meal that good in a long time. When you get a chance, check it out . Google Wild Sage Bistro/Spokane. The menu is fantastic.
Sunday morning, we rose early and made our way to the Spokane Arena where 900 graduates walked. Mitch told us 1200 graduated but not all opted to walk. What?!? To come all that way and not walk? I realize some had circumstances but, this is a rite of passage, a milestone!
The grads entered to bagpipes playing and this was no mean feat. Can you imagine playing the bagpipes for as long as it take 900 people to enter and situate? Great lungs is all I have to say.
I watched my son graduate. Now I have a better Mother's Day memory. Afterwards, we drove to the ADMIN buliding on campus where they had mimosas ready for all and the picture taking began. That was so cool to see all the grads with their families. I recall watching one woman trying to hold her two squiggling infant children while getting her picture taken. " This is how NOT to do college" she said.
We then made our way back to Mitch's house where he shared life with 5 other guys. Picture the duct taped couch, the "borrowed" dorm room coffee table, the mini fridges in the entry. Ahh, college life. They got the barbeque going and I made my way to the kitchen to prepare. Steaks, baked potatoes, watermelon and salads for all 40 or so of us. It was good to talk to the other's guys and their parents. It's gonna be a tough one for these guys to leave each other. They will all go their seperate ways tomorrow. Some have jobs, some don't. But what they do have are great memories and friendships to last a lifetime. Way to go Mitch and friends. You have acheived a goal. Welcome to the rest of your lives. Thanks for the memory.

Where do I start?

Like the title says: where do I start?

With me waking up to lovely flowers and deciding that I was not doing any housework today.
Just a Me day, taking care of female business ( don't go there) like Mani/pedi's,( don't you feel like a perv now?) than off to tan.
Which, allow me to be sidetracked....I do not feel as tho I am getting tan. What's up with that? Does the tanning bed NOT know I am half Guamanian? Chammorro? Whatever? I should be a lovely shade of nut brown by now and yet, here I am in Paleville. Oh, Autumn says my feet are tan. Whoppdeedoo. I feel I should be rewarded with more all over bronze color. Not happy in that department. All I ask is to be browner than Breanne and Michelle. That's all.

Anyway, So I made a trek to Trader Joes where I had to muscle in to get my favorite salad. "Excuse me", "pardon me" I politely say. To which I get a "look". Probably thought "what's this pale woman want?" As I grabbed my salad I made sure to do the ever so slight "backwards glance starting at the toes proceeding up the body to the head that clearly does not mask my disgust" look at the woman who was in my way. Take THAT beyotch.
Then I took it to work and shared it with Breanne. I know, that was nice of me. It's ok to think it.
At some point in time, Autumn suggested I sign up and stay for her Michael Jackson Dance Class.
Hmmmm. " No thanks, I'm already gone" was my reply. Now, if she was busting out the Thriller dance moves, THEN we'd be talkin! THEN we'd be dancin!!

Driving home, I had the fortune or more like, misfortune to observe several geriatric drivers. What is this> Fossil Thursday? Seriously! These people were clearly not comfortable in their cars!! So get off the road! Is it me, or do you see this too? I watched one woman get out of her car, grab her cane ( and I use the word "grab" loosely, that would indicate speed) and try to maneuver out of her car in a parking lot. I was in severe pain watching this. Thank goodness my light turned green lest I have an anxiety attack right then and there. When I pulled away, she still had not managed to get out of her car. The cane was in the parking lot, however. If they are that inept, what makes one believe that they will have cat like skills if an accident should occur?!?!? I'm pretty sure I would have had time to get her out of her car, walk her into the store, make the damn purchase and have her safey tucked back in her car all in under ten minutes. Gonna admit, I am kinda have tempted to get in my car and go see if she is still in that parking lot.......Nah....I'm good.
So now I am home and yeah, I buckled and did a load of laundry. Which got me thinking about the term "housewife". Why am I called that? Am I married to my house? No? Then why aren't I called "husbandwife"? Food for thought people, that's all. I don't think I can ever get thru a day without doing some domestic chore.....however small. Guilt is a powerful motivator.

I will not be an embarassment to Mitchell when he graduates this weekend. I am certain that "the woman with the matching nails and toes" will be noticed.
Why are you laughing? I can see you laughing you know! Hey, overall presentation is important! God forbid someone should see me and blog about me because of a faux pas ! I have to go now, I have to pick out the all important dress for the occasion. A complete package, if you will.
Like anyone cares. But! It is a ME day and that is what it entails.
If you so choose to tell me about your ME day, I promise I will listen.
And not give you the slight backward glance when I walk away.