Disney Dream Food

I guess I didn't take as many food pictures as I thought. This is only the first night.
If you click on the menu, you'll get a good idea of Animator's Palate offerings.

This is The Boys mac & cheese. He wouldn't touch it, because "somebody messed it up" by putting it in a "thing".

My endive & poached pear salad. Very good.

A Boy's room service. He could not be bothered to go up to the amazing breakfast buffet. (So we left him in the room to sleep while we went.) Don't worry, I hung out the "do not disturb" sign.

My first dessert, a little tiny bit of 3 different ones.

My Main dessert. a lemon pudding...with coffee.

The food on the boat is really good and plentiful. My son-in-law (bless his heart) had 3 entrees some nights. My daughter had several appetizers at once. I of course would never be such a pig. I stuck to tiny, baby, almost nonexistent desserts, with a "main" dessert. Now I wish I had brought the camera to dinner after the first night. These pictures really doesn't do the food justice. And the Buffets! One buffet was just sushi, where my daughter might as well have pulled up a chair. Oh, were they ever good.

Two more years, two more years. I'll just chant that...for two more years. Unless I win the lottery, then I'm going right then and taking all of you with me.

Disney's private island

My 2 older MeMe babies, Caitie & Blake

The Boy resting for awhile

One of the thing Disney has is private cabanas you can rent for the day.

Which are hard to come by(there's only 17 on the family beach) and is a little pricey.

But so worth it. You don't have to fight for a chair, hammock, space in the water, ect.

But it comes stocked with drinks in a fridge, snacks & a private beach too. Oh, and a "butler".

Worth the $ in my opinion, if you can snag one. Ours was #17, the very last one on the beach, so we were even more secluded.

My Rylie Boy, who just turned 2. The youngest, of my older daughter.

The kids playing on a deserted beach. Unheard of on the island. We loved it.

Pretty flowers, my husband wouldn't let me pick :(

Chip & Dale. I can never remember who is who. But see how the Boy's smile looks alot like the

rodent on the right.

One messy hot dog!

Oh how I love that boat

A sea urchin my son in law brought up from snorkeling to show us.

He was pretty cool looking. (then we was put back where he came from)

Up next a few *FoodPorn shots. I do love the food on the boat. I always try to get my money's worth in that department.

Disney Dream

My oldest daughter &
gorgeous granddaughter

Look closely at the words on the pillow. He crashed hard after a day on Disney Castaway Cay!

Beautiful chandelier in Royal Palace dining room. Can you see Cinderella's glass slippers?

My daughter in the Hypnosis show.

Every night the room steward left a "towel" animal. We could never figure out what this thing was.

Pirate night midnight buffet

chandelier in adults only Palo restaurant. It's supposed to be spaghetti & meatballs :)

Waiting on his own princess. I told him wait 30 years.

Nothing but water

THE prettiest girl and the meanest girl. She could win either category.

I got this one! An elephant. right?

One tired boy.

Up Next our beach day on Castaway Cay. It is beautiful!

Lego Land

this guy actually SNORES all day long!

We did Lego Land after the cruise.

We were not too empressed with the cost per person, the cost of food, that was limited to pizza, hotdogs and 3 hour lines to get it. The many Lego constructions were amazing to look at. the Boy had a good time and I guess that's all that matters. But they wont be seeing us again anytime too soon.

Next up Disney Dream photos!

Where to Start...

It seems like forever that I've blogged or read my favorite blogs.

(The last few blogs were "pre-set")

So I'll plunge right in.

This is no particular time line. I couldn't give it to you if I wanted to.

We were going on a long anticipated Disney cruise November 13th and try as I might I just couldn't get excited about it. Go figure.

As we were getting ready to board that beautiful ship I got a call from my sister saying my dad had passed away..in Indiana. We had my older daughter, her husband & 3 kids, ages 2,4,& 6, then me, my husband & The Boy. HOW do you explain to 4 kids who have waited for this moment for 2 years, you're not going on this ship now? You can't. We had so much tied up in the cruise, not to mention 4 kids with no understanding of such things. I made the very hard choice to go ahead with the trip. I was hanged if we went, hanged if we didn't. So I endured the wrath of siblings, for my so very selfish choice to continue and try to go back to visit my mom at a later date. Needless to say, It was not the trip we had planned for, hoped & dreamed about.

I can't recall more than half of what actually happened on the cruise. Surreal is a good word for it.

On the *fosterCare front, crazy things happened when we were gone. Bitsy & Whiny were in respite care while we were gone. And at a random hearing they decided why not send Bitsy home now. Bmom had 3 weeks living on her own, sober, in subsidized housing, no job, no transport, no daycare. Why not now. Boom, custody with no *dfcs* follow up was granted !?!

And of course we were gone, and did not get to say our good byes.

THEN this past Friday I get a call at 4:30 and they say Whiny's mom really needs to get into housing, but can't do it unless she has children with her (part of the programs requirements) So why not go ahead & give her *physical custody so she can get housing, & they'll keep legal custody. NO housing, no job, no transport, never *parented sober ect. I'm asked to have her ready to go by 5:30.

I just don't get it. Are they setting these women up for failure?

The Boy had a birthday somewhere in the middle of all this. I hope it was a good one for him.

Then the very same day Whiny left, they called for a sibgroup* of 4. Oldest with bipolar, next oldest autistic. No can do. I'm not "made" that way. The 2 youngest 3 & 5, I say yes. then I find out the 5 yr old girl is NOT potty trained and never been to school. Doesn't even know her colors, ABC's, nothing. The preschool year is of course half over. What are the odds she'll catch up?

An interesting sidenote: I had to take her to my favorite local consignment store, because of course, they only came with the DIAPERS on their butt ( I usually say the clothes on their backs, but they didn't HAVE clothes) She had just eat 2 pieces of birthday cake & a gallon or so of ice cream. We walk into the store, get 10 feet in and she says, "I think I'm going to throw up". And procedes to projectile vomit in a 90 degree circle and then all the way to the door.

I will never be able to show my face there again. I did clean it up, but needless to say dirty looks were given all around...and I can't blame them.

So they didn't come with clothes, but they did bring a nice stomach virus to share with one and all. ( insert manic screaming here)

The boy is as cute as a button, well behaved,and wants to use the potty more than anything. SCORE!

Oh and in the middle of all this, the week before the cruise I had bronchitis, which I thought had got better. Only to come back to a nice case of pneumonia. I felt like I wanted to die most of last week. FYI, Z packs are now generic! oh yeah, no more 160.00. Eight bucks, to no longer feel like I want to die.

So now I will have new adventures to blog about my foray into doing ethnic hair and trying to make it up to my mom for being the worst daughter ever conceived.

I promise to post some really awsome photos of our Disney Dream Cruise.

TODAY I have

A 6 Year Old Boy! Who is handsome and a genius.

Happy Birthday My Boy.

Happy Thanksgiving ?

I've never been sure what the proper greeting for this holiday is.
Happy, Merry, Have A ...
What ever you say, I hope you had lots of good food to eat & nothing to clean up.

Our friend from last year, Two-U (u as in umbrella) I have no idea why the boy named him Two-U, to-u. I'm unsure of the spelling. He landed on what we call our Japanese clock.
He is not your conventional "elf on a shelf", he was a DIY elf and I made the story up as I went along. It makes it alot easier on us older mama's who have a hard time remembering what it's supposed to be doing. If he/me forgets to move/do something mischievous one night, I can always make up a story about him getting in late one night when traffic was bad on the way back from walmart/north pole. 'Cause I'm lazy/forgetful like that.

Happy, Merry, Have A Great Thanksgiving!

RSV season

As a nurse and a foster parent I have seen and had to deal with more than my fair share of RSV or Respiratory syncytial virus. Although more common in Preemies, I have seen many otherwise healthy babys contract RSV. It is contagious. Be careful this time of year taking young babies to Dr. offices and other places where alot of children congregate. You can keep a blanket pulled over your baby in a carrier in public places like for Dr. appts. (there maybe an undiagnosed RSV child waiting with you)

What You Should Know on Nov. 17, World Prematurity Day

Life as expectant parents is joyous and celebratory. In most cases, babies arrive on time, healthy and ready to head home with Mom and Dad. But for the more than half a million American babies born prematurely each year, this often isn’t the case. Many parents of preterm infants are unprepared for the special medical care preemies often require. According to a March of Dimes survey, this is because most expecting parents don’t discuss preterm birth with their doctor during prenatal care, even if they are at high risk. On November 17 - World Prematurity Day - we’re hoping to help change this.

Despite recent slight declines in rates of prematurity, 1,400 babies are still born prematurely in the United States every day, and 13 million babies are affected by prematurity around the world. Prematurity, defined as being born before 37 weeks completed gestation, disrupts a baby’s development in the womb, often stunting the growth of some of the body’s most critical organs. At birth, preemies often have difficulty with breathing, feeding and maintaining temperature. Because their immune systems haven’t had time to fully mature, preterm infants are more likely to develop infections, and because their lungs are underdeveloped, they are more susceptible to respiratory problems.

For example, nearly every baby contracts respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) by age two. In most full-term babies, symptoms are similar to those of the common cold and parents may not even know their child has the virus. However, because they don’t have the antibodies needed to fight off infection, preterm infants—even those born just a few weeks early—are at increased risk for developing an RSV-related infection, often requiring medical attention or hospitalization. Parents should speak with their pediatrician to find out if their baby is at high risk for developing severe RSV disease, and how they can prevent against RSV this winter.

RSV Quick Facts:
· RSV is the leading cause of infant hospitalization, responsible for more than 125,000 hospitalizations and up to 500 infant deaths each year.
· RSV occurs in epidemics each fall through spring. The CDC has defined “RSV season” as beginning in November and lasting through March for most parts of North America.
· Certain regions have longer RSV seasons than others, with the season beginning as early as July (e.g., Florida) or ending in April.
· Despite its prevalence, one-third of mothers have never heard of RSV.

Prevention is Key:
There is no treatment for RSV, so it’s important for parents to take the following preventive steps to help protect their child:
· Wash hands, toys, bedding, and play areas frequently
· Ensure you, your family, and any visitors in your home wash their hands or use hand sanitizer
· Avoid large crowds and people who may be sick
· Never let anyone smoke near your baby
· Speak with your child’s doctor if you believe he or she may be at high risk for RSV, as a preventive therapy may be available

Be Aware of Symptoms:
Contact your child’s pediatrician immediately if your child exhibits one or more of the following:
· Persistent coughing or wheezing
· Rapid, difficult, or gasping breaths
· Blue color on the lips, mouth, or under the fingernails
· High fever
· Extreme fatigue
· Difficulty feeding


To learn more about RSV, visit http://www.rsvprotection.com/. For more about the specialized health needs of preterm infants, visit http://www.preemievoices.com/.

www.momcentral.com/mcc,

I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of MedImmune and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate

Thank You

In Flanders Fields
John McCrae

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved, and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch, be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

Today, we remember our heroes and their sacrifices

I will thank a veteran personally tonight when he gets home :)