2 Dogs, 2 Babies and Us!: March 2012

After having a blast taking in Disney, we checked in at the hotel where Jason's company was having a conference. We were a little nervous just having one room for both of us-even though it was a much more plush room-because Spencer would be able to see us when it was sleepy time and she would think it was play time. It turned out to be not so bad. The hotel had a great swim area, huge pool with zero entrance on both ends, a lazy river, water slide and these water falls throughout the pool and river. They also had a fire pit! Spencer and I just hung out in the room and played with her toys before it was nap time and mommy nap time. Daddy had to go to his company's stuff. The next day Jason was busy all day so Spencer and I headed down to the pool for the day! She loved the zero entry walk-in area and the water falls. We rode the lazy river for a while and had lunch. So relaxing! Here is my pool baby!

That afternoon, we headed back to the room to get ready for our dinner out at Maggiano's. Spencer wore her red Mickey dress with zebra accents. Sadly we didn't get any pictures at dinner since we were just trying to manage a one year old with company clients. She did well until she needed to walk so we walked up and down the long hallway outside the banquet room. Everyone thought she was cute. Our biggest surprise was dessert. They had these mini tiramisu cakes, chocolate cakes, creme brulee and cheese cakes. Spencer never eats cake with icing. But she kept reaching for the chocolate cake with icing. So I cut off a little piece and let her try it. She wanted more, and more, so much that I ended up getting her a piece for herself. Then the nice waiters thought she might not like these desserts so they brought her vanilla ice cream! Sweets overload.

The next day, Spencer and I headed to the outlet mall near the hotel while Jason had another full day of company stuff. We found a pink pair of crocs for Spencer and she enjoyed her "Buddy" toy that we bought her for the trip-our novel toy for standing in lines etc. Here she is with buddy at the mall.

We loved Disney so much and can't wait to go back. Next time we will have at least two kids in tow!

We find out on Thursday if a baby brother or sister is coming to our house. Stay tuned!

Last month, after only nine months of working the job that originally allowed us to move here, Jason found another job that allowed him to work from home. This was an answered prayer for our family because it allows him to be around us more, not spend as much money on gas and lunch, and created an environment that is less stressful for Jason! We love it! Spencer gets to wake up each morning and see her daddy and we all eat dinner together at the same time each night. Before we didn't see Jason in the mornings and we weren't sure when he was coming home (some nights we didn't see him at all!)

With this new job, a new trip was planned for their conference in all places-Orlando, FL. WALT DISNEY here we come! We decided based on budget, time and Spencer's age, that we would just do one day at Magic Kingdom and go to Downtown Disney. Thus began my research for budget friendly ways to enjoy Disney World and too look cute while we were there.

Thanks to Jason's roommate from college and his family, we were able to find a hotel-under a hundred dollars a night that had free hot breakfast, free shuttle service and even had two rooms to sleep in-one for us and one for Spencer. They also had wonderful suggestions about the strollers, food in the park etc. Thanks Talbotts!

After much searching on Etsy and Pinterest, I figured out what I wanted to make for Spencer to wear when she met the Mouse of all mice and went to a grown up dinner for her daddy's new company. Here is what I came up with:

I made a bow to match the outfits but it turned out to be a little heavy. Now we were ready to visit the most magical place on earth!

Our hotel was great and Spencer went to sleep after talking for a little while but not too bad. We got up early, got ready, ate breakfast, and got on the shuttle to the park. How exciting to ride in and anticipate how Spencer would react to everything. I almost wondered would she even realize how fun this place was?

We got to the gate about 20 minutes before the park opened. I applied our sunscreen and got a park map. Then the train came around with all the characters. Spencer's face lit up when she saw Mickey on the train and she waved and clapped-SUCCESS!!!

Being a Saturday in March-Spring Break Season-we prepared ourselves for long lines and people everywhere and we brought lots of water for the heat. We were pleasantly surprised...we never waited more than 30 min for a ride and within the first hour we rode the Merry Go Round, Peter Pan, Snow White, and It's a Small World-my personal favorite, and took a picture with the Fairy Godmother outside of Cinderella's Castle. Spencer loved seeing the big horses pulling the carriage and loved all the animals in It's a Small World. Then it was time to see the Disney Princesses and Mickey Mouse. We just happened to personally know the girl who is Belle at Disney and we were excited we got to see her fancied up along with Cinderella and Aurora. Spencer was a little shy but she was super excited to see Mickey and Minnie-she grabbed their noses and they gave her a kiss and she kissed and hugged them. The best part was we only waited about 15 minutes for the princesses and 20 minutes to see Mickey and Minnie!

We also rode Pirates of the Caribbean, had lunch, got Spencer a Mickey ear hat with her name on it, rode the train, and walked around all day. We had sooooo much fun.

Waiting for the train!

Look at those horses daddy!

The next day we checked out of our hotel and met up with my old roommate and her husband Costa along with his parents. They all just happened to be in Orlando and were eating about 10 minutes from our hotel. So they got to meet Spencer because the last time I saw them was at their wedding and I was pregnant with Spencer. This time I was pregnant again-so I think we need to stop meeting like this :)

After lunch we had some time to spend before going to the hotel where Jason's conference was being held, so we headed to Downtown Disney. Spencer loved walking around the Dino Cafe place and seeing the dinosaurs move-just like in her favorite show Dinosaur Train. We also played in the Lego store-my dream job! We decided that we would let Spencer pick out one souvenir from Disney besides her hat and had a great time letting her see all the stuff to pick from. She decided on a Tigger pillow pet that she absolutely must have because she wouldn't let go of him. I also picked up some Mr. Potato Head parts for her birthday while we were there. We had lunch outside and looked at the birds and the ducks by the water. The weather was awesome.