Welcome Baby Brynley!

So please to welcome the newest member of our clan, my niece, baby Brynley Paige Reeves, born on December 17th! She is simply precious and such a little blessing. Mandy ended up having to have a c-section after laboring all day- what a trooper she was! We finally got to go in and see the baby near midnight.

Ugly Sweater Christmas Party

So this year, our friends Lyn and Rob hosted an "Ugly Sweater" Christmas Party! Alan provided the prizes for best ugly sweater and a runner up for least effort as well. Carrie (pictured on the far right below) won top prize with her 'goose' sweater!

Matt custom made a Hanukkah sweat and was a close second!

Family, Friends and the Holidays!

Okay, I am way behind on my blogging, I know, bad Michelle. Forgive me. That's what I get for doing a week at Disney in December, welcoming a niece to the world and all the other craziness that goes along with Christmas.

So yes, we had a fabulous Christmas! We spent our usual Christmas Eve at my mom's house, as is our tradition. We always get together, eat, drink and are merry. We always have mexican food, consisting of chips, dips, tacos, enchiladas and all the fixins!

Then everyone's favorite, present time! Alissa and Chris kindly got Alan a snuggie! The gift that keeps you warm all year long!

Will got a talking trash can that he loves. He also got his train table from mama and papa! He got a cash register too and fake money. He really loved all his great gifts!


We also enjoyed our tree this year- all decorated in almost exclusively disney! William was very good about not touching or messing with it- okay, most of the time anyhow! He loved to turn on the lights every night.

All in all, another wonderful and memorable Christmas eve with family and friends. We enjoyed it at my parent's new house too, tons of room to play and enjoy!

Let It Snow!

We didn't see any snow in December, but it arrived in January! On Sunday, we got probably 2 inches of snow at our house. NE of us they got up to 6.5 inches! It was beautiful watching the heavy flakes fall all day long from inside the warmth of the house.



Even the dogs cozied up next to the heater to stay warm!
William didn't last long outside, he wasn't sure what to make of it and there wasn't quite enough to make a snow man.

These Boots Are Made for Walking

Wordless Wednesday! Just had to try on mommy's boots!

I want to go back to Disney World tomorrow!

So says our little William. Apparently he had a great time! We just are stepping back into the real world of work, holidays and family after spending 7 wonderful nights in sunny (but cold) Florida with Mickey. We enjoyed spending time with Alan's mom and our niece, Lindsey too.

We got to experience our first stay at Disney Vacation Club (DVC) members- Disney's version of a timeshare......our room was fabulous with 2 bathrooms, kitchen, full laundry (came in handy!). If only it was warm enough to enjoy the pool, but it wasn't meant to be.re are a few highlights of our great time! William can't wait to go back next October- just the three of us for some trick or treating with Mickey and friends.

On our first full day, we had the long awaited breakfast with Pooh Bear---Will LOVED the characters and gave Pooh a big hug and then got a free cupcake for his birthday too!

We found PUSH, the talking trash can too- PUSH moves around and talks to the kids. He even sang happy birthday to William after seeing his birthday button. As a trash can lover and expert, Will thought this was the coolest!We also participated in the Pick a Pearl at Japan in Epcot. Alan's mom, Lindsey and I all selected a clam which they opened amid great traditional drum beats and ceremony. I had the biggest pearl so far that day at 8.25. We had a great time doing this all together.
We got to catch the 'snow' again while enjoying the beautiful Osborne lights at the Hollywood Studios- another of Will's favorites!
We had a great last breakfast with Mickey and friends. Will had a blast seeing Donald, Mickey, Minnie, Pluto and Goofy!
Other highlights included Lindsey getting third place in the hula hoop contest at the DVC member merry mixer! Catching amazing fireworks at Epcot from our table at dinner with a great view from the window (in the nice warm inside, instead of freezing outside!). We had a great time at the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, rode a ton of rides and saw the Christmas parade with Santa! We also saw my old college program roommate perform in her new entertainment act at Epcot. She is a "ziti sister" in the Italy pavilion with multiple shows throughout the day. She was so much fun and Lindsey and Alan even got to participate in the show.

We also enjoyed the Candlelight Processional at Epcot and listening to Jodi Benson (the voice of the Little Mermaid) narrate the story of Christmas with a huge choir. Another big milestone, Will measured at 40", tall enough to ride some of the big rides, including Test Track, Soarin, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain- which he participated in all and loved them. My boy has no fear!

In the end, a great time was had by all, depsite the freezing cold, record-breaking temperatures while we were there. So now we countdown until next year, when we visit Mickey again in October 2011!

Home Sweet Home- with the Mouse!

We are so excited to have only 2 more 'sleeps' until we meet up with our favorite mouse! We leave for Disney World on Saturday, 12/4 at the bright and early (okay, not so bright, but early!) at 4am. We will spend 7 lovely nights enjoying the magic at our new Disney Vacation Club (DVC) home- Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort!


We have a lakeview room, but hoping to get on the edge where we can see the lake and the Magic Kingdom!! It is a one bedroom with two baths and we can't wait to check out our new 'home'. We are taking along my mother in law and my 10yo niece, as well as of course William and Alan. So 3 adults, 2 kids. Should be fun!

We have some fun activities planned, including Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, a visit to the Bibbidi Bobbodi Boutique for my niece, the Candlelight Processional with Jodi Benson (of the Little Mermaid fame) and some fabulous meals, including one with Pooh and Mickey (per Will's request).

With William potty trained now (3 days at day care dry in big boy underwear!!!), we are going to know where every single bathroom in Disney is!! I am packing my patience for sure. Newly potty trained and on vacation. Should be interesting, but i know he can do it!

so here is my list of must do's for this trip, all new things for me- let's see post trip, how many we actually accomplish!

• Pick a Pearl in Japan (i purchased the cutest Cinderella carriage necklaces to hold the pearls)
• Try a fabulous cupcake at Starring Rolls bakery
• Meet up with some www.disboards.com MOMs friends at the MVMCP!
• See the 'taffy lady' in Japan
• Find my old WDW College Program roomie, Heather, working her new entertainment gig in Italy!
• Find PUSH, the talking trash can (remember Will is obsessed with trash!)
• Try the new La Hacienda restaurant in Mexico (reservations our first night)
• Try the new Via Napoli restaurant in Italy (our last night)
• Get character autographs and pics in Camp Minnie Mickey (we always skip this for some reason).
  

So those are a few must dos that are new for me, which is saying alot- although at disney, it is pertty easy to find new things to do- there is so much! So wish us luck and pixie dust for a fabulous time!