The Day is Here

The day has come for mom and dad's trip to Disney! I feel so giddy and excited, you would think I was the person who was going for the first time. :)
Their plane comes in late tonight, around 10:45pm. So once I get off work tonight, I will go check us into the hotel and make a wal-mart run for mom so that when she gets here she can just relax and enjoy it. I bought cast member lanyards with character pendents for each of the little guys. Winnie picked Lady and the Tramp for her character, Josh picked Goofy, D'Lynn wanted Chip and Dale and Caleb picked Donald. All of the little guys except for Winnie will be getting Disney Dollars as belated/early birthday presents since they have birthdays while Trevor and I are working at Disney.
I am SO excited that I only got a few hours of sleep. And I am cleaning and running around in a frenzy trying to get everything done. Sounds pretty ridiculous, huh?
I am looking forward to having several days off and getting to really enjoy Disney as a guest. I was able to get Friday - Monday off. I am not sure which parks we will be going to each day, I think we are just going to wing it. But, fortunately, we have learned the ins and outs of getting the most out of our time in the parks.
Well, I guess I will go find something to do before I go into work at 11. Hopefully time will fly quickly today at Hollywood Studios so that they will all be here before I know it!

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Family Vacation

Ok, so it really isn't much of a vacation for me... BUT my parents and the lil guys will be coming to Disney World October 16-21(next week!).
I am beyond excited about this for many reasons. The main one being that I miss my family terribly and I can not wait for them to be here and get to see and experience some of the things I experience here everyday. It has been many, many years since my parents came to Disney World(early 1990's) so my younger brothers and sisters haven't gotten to come. That is probably one of the most exciting things in my opinion - getting to be here for their first views of the parks and helping create some of that magic for them. All of us will all be staying at the All-Star Music Resort. We opted for one of the value resorts because with my discount it was $100-$200 less per night than the other places which can accomodate a group of our size. During October they are also doing a special for cast members with the Disney Dining Plan. For adults it is $20.99 per night and somewhat cheaper for children(which Caleb only made by a year). This includes 1 table service meal, a quick service meal, and a snack per day. It's quite a steal considering you can't even eat at a table service restaurant for that price(unless, of course, you are dining on water and appetizers only). So we are VERY excited to be tasting some of the finer foods at Disney.
Here are some of the places we plan on eating:


The Hoop dee Doo Musical Revue! We have category one seats which means we should have a really good view of the stage. I am really excited about this one. :)




Teppan Edo of Japan in Epcot.Goodness knows I love Japanese food!




The Crystal Palace at the Magic Kingdom. Mom and I talked it over and thought it would be fun to do character dining and this is what we ended up choosing. I am even more excited about the fact that I know several people who are "friends with characters" at the Crystal Palace! Which means that I might get pictures with characters that I actually know which is always a fun experience.

We have one more dining reservation but I don't think we have decided what to do with that one yet. We shall see.

Work today was long (10.5 hours) but it went by farely quickly and that always makes work 100% better. Extra magic hours were tonight and I didn't get off until midnight. It is super late and I am headed to bed. Good night!

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Growing

"I'm growing. I don't like it. 
I'm growing, and it hurts. 
I love You, but I'm tired. 
Guess I've got a lot to learn." 
- Growing by Wayne Watson

So much is changing, I don't even know where to begin.

WORKI have officially moved to Hollywood Studios to work in QSR(Quick Service).

CAR
The Patty broke down(yet again) today. We'll find out soon what is going on with it. Since we ride the bus to and from work, it is not as pressing to get it fixed as it would be otherwise. Right now we are just waiting.

SCHOOLI am actually sad that I am not in school for the fall semester. But only a little bit. :)
I miss buying school supplies. For some odd reason, I just LOVE shopping for school/art supplies. But I know I need this break. Hopefully I will be finished with one degree by this time next year if I can get everything scheduled the way I need to. And then I will get to work on my second degree but I think things will be a lot easier once I get that first degree because I will have a (hopefully) better paying job and be able to take my time getting my second degree

ME
I am actually really happy with who I am and where I am. I have been enjoying our days off and having some really amazing dates. After all, we are in the happiest place on earth.
I am finally getting a good balance of work and housekeeping. In fact, I made a wonderful mexican dish tonight and it felt GREAT! I am sick of eating/seeing fast food. I want good home cooking. :)
I have lost weight! I have not gone back to weigh myself since a week or two after we got here... BUT I have dropped several sizes and lost a good many inches on my waist. I feel so much more comfortable with myself and in my own skin. I have always felt very self-conscious about my weight, especially when both of my older sisters are very slim. But I lost the weight and I am still eating good food. Strangely enough, all of this was without working out. I simply "slimmed down" my portion sized and chose to eat a little bit better. I haven't had time to workout with the way we have been working 50+ hours a week but the busy pace and the work has helped me slim down.

FRIENDS
This is an area of my life that is really weighing on me right now. While I want friends, and I know that I need girl friends to hang out with and talk with, I am at a different point in my life than most girls in my life. I have learned that there are many types of friendship. Friends for a Lifetime. Friends for a Reason. Friends for a Season.
I miss my "normals". The group of girls from Pinelake that I was constantly with during high school. These girls have been such a support to me through everything and though we don't talk every day and we don't all get to see each other very much, whenever we do hang out it is like we have never skipped a beat. That is the type of friendship I need. These are the Lifetime type of Friendships.
I miss my Alpha Delta Pi girls. These ladies made my last year at USM bearable. I hated USM before but once I met these girls I finally felt comfortable and had a sense of belonging on that campus. But very few of them talk to me. I understand the distance... but somehow I feel so excluded from everything that is going on with them now. They all bonded during sisterhood week and then recruitment... now they are all going back to school while I am here in Florida. I think that this group of friends could both qualify as friends for a Reason or a Season with a few sticking out into the Lifetime category. I will never regret joining a sorority and it was great while it lasted. I wish it had lasted longer, but like I have said before, I feel like I am at a different point in my life than most people my age.
I am making some wonderful friends here but I know that most likely they will all only be friends for a Season. After all, several have already left and the rest of us will part ways before the month is out or in January. It's hard but definitely worth the friendships that are formed. I will never forget the ICPs that I worked with in Tomorrowland. I miss the Europeans and their lovely accents. But the people I will miss the most are "my" Chinese girls. These girls have endeared themselves to me in a way that few people ever have in my life. They are truly kindred spirits who I have waited my whole life to meet. And I have already shed a few tears over them leaving though they aren't leaving until the 22nd/29th. *sigh* Such a struggle. I am not the type to distance myself or miss out on meeting people and becoming friends. But it is hard knowing you will have to leave them in a short time. It isn't like college where you will be with the same people for the majority of your college career. It has definitely been a learning and growing experience.

I think that is enough rambling for today...
I am growing, things are changing... It's life :)

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Moving on Up

..Or over... or just plain old transferring.

It went through! I will be moving to Hollywood Studios. I am excited for so many reasons. I LOVE Studios - which is what I will refer to it as since it is still MGM in my heart but I am forever getting corrected that the name has changed. Believe me, I KNOW they changed the name... but that doesn't mean I have to accept it. haha.

I will miss Tomorrowland and the people that I work with there but I truly believe that the good outweighs the bad in this situation. And God truly opened up the door for me to transfer. Unfortunately, I will not be working in Merchandise anymore. I will be doing Quick Service Food and Beverage. On the bright side, I get paid more and the shifts are shorter. :)

I am glad that I will be leaving when all of my ICP's leave. That means I won't have to work in Tomorrowland without my favorite Chinese girls. We are planning a trip to Miami for next weekend which should be an adventure in and of itself.

The details of my yesterday will have to wait for another day because I have to finish getting ready for work. So for my one reader ;) be looking for the details of yesterday.

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7 Reasons Not To Spray Perfume On A Bus

(the events of Saturday) 
1) The person sitting next to you might be allergic
2) Their face might turn purple, they might start to itch all over and they might have trouble breathing
3) Yeah, the guys with the alpha unit might be nice but seriously, who wants to be hooked up to their oxygen machine or heart monitor?
4)Some random man might take a picture of the person who had the allergic reaction while she is hooked up to said machines.
5)The person who had the allergic reaction will have to leave work early and only get to stay for 2 hours of their 9 hour shift. In some cases this might be a good thing but when 5.5 of the 7 hours they missed out on would have been overtime and you calculate how much money was lost... it is NOT a good thing.
6)Poor person with the allergic reaction spent hours laying on the couch with no energy to eat, drink, etc... and eventually ended up throwing up. Yuck
7)Your perfume smelled worse than old lady perfume. Why were you wearing it anyway?


Saturday morning I took the A bus as usual to West Clock parking lot and then got on the Disney VIP Cast Member bus to go to where we clock in. A Chinese girl sitting next to me sprayed her perfume and I asked her to stop. Honestly, I don't think she understood what I was asking because she just laughed and said, "ah, nah nah". She continued to spray it a few more time and then put it up. My face started to itch really bad and then my arms and legs. The 3 minute ride felt like it was 30 minutes. When I got off the bus I headed straight for the Tomorrowland base and clocked in. I figured that once I was out of the bus and breathing in different, clean air that I would be ok. Not the case... My friend Kimberly came up to me and basically dragged me to the manager's office stating that my face was turning purple. At this point I hadn't looked in a mirror and I realized that I was having trouble breathing. So I told the managers what happened and they called the Alpha Unit(Disney's version of paramedics because it sounds less startling to guests). The came about 5 minutes later, gave me some medicine, hooked me up to an oxygen machine and heart monitor. And so there I sat at the base where every Tomorrowland person could see me as they passed by, clocked in, or went on break - no privacy at all. They had me hooked up for who knows how long and during this time some of the head Tomorrowland managers(not just my merch managers) and some of the head Magic Kingdom bigwigs came and checked on me. Quite possibly one of the most embarrassing moments of my life but THEN it got worse, some random man came and took my picture while I was sitting there miserable and hooked up to the machines. They offered to let me go home but I told them I wanted to atleast try and work. Unfortunately the medicine was making me super sleepy so I eventually went home. And proceeded to lay on the couch and watch the Love Comes Softly movies from about 2pm until who knows when. I will not go into details about the actually "getting sick" part. Sadly enough, I felt slightly better and was so exhausted so I finally fell asleep. Sunday morning I slept in and felt SOOO much better. So there are the details of my lovelySaturday!

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Facts of Life

I have really enjoyed the last two days. Yesterday was spent playing in the parks(Epcot and Hollywood Studios) with different friends and Trevor coming and going. I spent the whole day with Chelsea, one of the girls I work with and we had a GREAT time.

Today Ime and I ran errands and ended our afternoon at Sam's. I LOVE shopping at Sam's. Buying in bulk makes things so much easier and it is especially good down here because it is MUCH cheaper than paying for things in smaller quantities elsewhere. I spent my evening cleaning house and trying to ignore the loud music from the apartment below. I decided to get away from the apartment and walked to the gym to workout for a bit. The music was still going when I got back and considering things were "walking" the coffee table because of the bass I finally called the gate and complained. I hate doing it but it was obnoxiously loud(as in I could hear it over the dishwasher and TV) and it had been going on for 4 hours. Thankfully, the music has stopped and my head has stopped throbbing.

While I cleaned and created the layouts that are posted below I watched this:

I haven't watched this show in AGES. :) I love it and I appreciate it in a whole new light from when I was younger. And now for the layouts... I was kind of worried about them but I really think they turned out well! Let me know what you think.

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The Trip Home

The Trip Home

Myself and D'Lynn - Poppa called us "mini-me and maxi-me" all weekend and she loved it! When we came into the living room and surprised all of them, she immediately jumped in my arms and literally didn't let go for almost an hour.

Josh and Caleb(aka Peanut) - These boys are a handful, mess, etc... But I love them and their craziness, young-boy-ness. Weren't they precious in their tuxes?!

Winnie will forever be baby Moses in my eyes. She has been baby Moses to the entire family since I stuck her in my mom's plastic sewing basket and floated her in the filled bathtub. No harm done, she was safe in the basket and she loved the attention. Yes, I thought she was my very own live babydoll when she was born. =) But she is growing up into a young lady, which is exciting and scary at the same time.

Rae and Honey - Rachel and I managed to snag some time together this weekend, which I am really glad of. :)
Honey finally got married and she will be back tomorrow from their mini-honeymoon.

I am exceedingly tired but not sleepy. Back to work and "the real world" tomorrow at the wonderful world of Disney. Magic Kingdom here I come. I am refreshed from our lovely weekend at home and it has renewed a feeling for us to embrace the months we have here before we return to the place that will always claim "home" in our hearts.

Kit name: Cinnamon Toast

Designer: Vicki - A Work In Progress 

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SURPRISE

Well, Honey said that people actually read my blog... and that some of these readers thought that the "news" was that I was pregnant. Now that the surprise has actually occurred I can correct that.

The excitement was over getting plane tickets to come to Jackson for Honey's wedding tomorrow. Trevor and I flew in yesterday afternoon and Poppa picked us up. He was the only person who knew we were coming so it was a big surprise to everyone else(or atleast I am going to keep believing that we pulled off the surprise perfectly).

So we are home until Sunday morning when we will be flying back to Orlando.
=)

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Getting Creative

I bought a simple black dress last week. Since then I have bought beads and have been "jazzing it up". I am actually quite happy with the results so far. I usually have alot of creative ideas but rarely follow through with them. I rewarded myself yesterday for it too. =)

I sold some clothes that I rarely wear at Plato's closet Yes, I brought clothes with me to Florida knowing I rarely wear them. I brought them with two motives - 1) hoping to lose weight and fit into them 2) thinking I might wear some of the shirts in light of the lovely Florida weather. I have lost the weight but I don't like the way the shorts fit and the shirts aren't that comfortable. So I created some room in my closet by clearing them out and added some "fun money" to my wallet.

After leaving Plato's Closet, I drove around the rest of the shopping center and found a hole-in-the-wall shoe store. I found shoes that match my beads going on my dress perfectly. They are so cute and so comfortable! AND they were on sale so I got them for $10. =) Now I have a cute outfit in case a special occasion comes up. 

____________________________________________________________________
Work has been pretty good. I got a migraine a few days ago and got an Early Release but other than that it has been good. I love the people I work with and closing makes time pass so much faster. Sadly, I like the park best once the guests leave. It's a completely different atmosphere and the hours feel like minutes in a good way. But I do love when the guests are there too.

I have been getting some short shifts. They are nice because I go in at 4 or 5 and get off around midnight or 1. It is so nice because I love being home and having the majority of my day to do as I please. BUT the downside is that I am not getting many hours in for the week. They say it will get better once all the seasonal people leave at the end of the summer. We shall see.

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So Excited!

Ah! I am almost giddy with excitement. But sadly, I can't share the source of my giddiness JUST yet. I am so good at keeping secrets but this one is just about to make me bust. haha. So since I can't exactly share just yet... I will change the subject.

Things are in the works for me to change parks. =) So if this happens I will have better shifts (no more getting off at 0500!) and I will be in my favorite park - Hollywood Studios which is still near and dear to my heart as MGM. It is my favorite because of the theming. I love old Hollywood, movie sets, etc. Alas, I was definitely born in the wrong time period. :)

I worked a short shift today which was greatly appreciated. I got off work at 7:45, got supper and then headed to Wal-mart for some much needed grocery shopping. I have both decided that it will be worth driving the extra 10 minutes to go to a different Wal-mart that is less of a tourist trap. Needless to say, I miss the slow pace and organization of the Wal-marts back home.

I work a long and late shift tomorrow but then I have Wednesday and Thursday off. I have made a commitment to myself to get to sleep at a decent hour and get up no later than 10. I need to make the most of my day and I want to make more time for two of my favorite things: working out and laying out at the pool. :)

Well, enough rambling for now. Good night and sweet dreams!

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Wishes

Last night was amazing. As I worked outside at Ursa's Hat Cart, I had the opportunity to see Wishes in a completely different light. Not as a guest, not as a cast member peeking my head outside of the door to catch a glimpse of the fireworks, but as a spectator of the guests. The looks on peoples faces, the wonder, the excitement and the realization of all the possibilities - I saw it all first hand. And I won't lie... It definitely gave me goosebumps.

It was beautiful and the understanding, once again, that I am a part of making the magic hit me. There is no real way to describe it. It was so special.

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Greetings from Orlando

Greetings from the beautiful, wonderful, happiest place on earth(aka, Walt Disney World). We have been here a week and a half.

Our new apartment is beyond nice. I have been taking full advantage of the pool and fitness room. I am working in Tomorrowland Merchandise at the Magic Kingdom. There has been some talk about transferring me to Studios after the summer - which would be nice because the hours are SO much better! But I have second thoughts about it. Though Studios is my favorite park because of it's theming, I love Magic Kingdom and I work with some of the most amazing people. We will see how God leads in this situation.

We have been working for a little over two weeks and we love it! Training was somewhat monotonous but when I actually got to get out on stage, in my lovely costume ;), it was amazing. I get to be a part of the pixie dust experience by helping make the magic possible. I love being able to make people smile and knowing that I will be a part of their wonderful Disney memories. I even made it into a few pictures! 

On our days off we are enjoying playing in the parks and taking advantage of the resorts. Trevor and I both had today off and went to Animal Kingdom for the morning and early afternoon. We didn't see everything but it was nice to know we could go in for a few hours and leave. Trevor keeps reminding me that we have 7 months here but I can't help but want to fully enjoy every minute of it!

We are about to head to Downtown Disney to take in a movie but I just wanted to update my blog (even though it is just you reading, Heather). :) Pictures to come from our adventures this afternoon.

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Moving Madness

I type this as I sit in my apartment which completely lacks furniture and is entirely consumed by boxes. There is so much to do and so little time to make sure it all gets taken care of.

Needless to say, I am beyond excited about moving to Orlando. I am in love with the Orlando area and specifically Disney World. 7 months of playing there sounds alright with me. :)

I am heading to Jackson on Wednesday night so that I can sing with Poppa. Thursday I will come back to Hattiesburg with Patty and load up everything that will be going to Orlando.

I will be staying with my Uncle Sunday-Wednesday morning. Wednesday morning we will be checking into our new apartment at 9 am. The next few days will be filled with Traditions, where we will be orientated into the Disney College Program and find out more about each of our jobs.

To sum it all up, despite all of the hard work, I am SUPER excited. :)

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Life updates

School is going really well right now. It is great to be able to focus completely on school and not have to work. I am not sure how much longer that will last, but I am thoroughly enjoying it for as long as I can. I am really excited about actually having time to work ahead on projects and I hope that I will keep on doing it even after I start working again. The naps every afternoon are really nice as well.

Apartment... well I noticed that the roof was leaking and sagging in the bathroom. After a week or so of having what we named the "lovely toilet water" from above spattering all over my bathroom. They worked Tuesday through Thursday last week replacing the toilet and flooring upstairs. Today they came in and replaced the bathroom ceiling. It really spoke volumes that they came in as soon as we put in our maintenance request and worked until it was fixed.

I have been enjoying organizing everything. The one of the best parts is being able to cook lunch and dinner everyday. It is just so fulfilling. :) Not that I don't miss the cafeteria food on campus. Haha. I also love having my sisters and my friends over. Almost every night there is someone over at the apartment and I LOVE it. 

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So long ART113

Well, after much prayer and consideration, I have dropped ART 113 which frees up about 6 hours a week in class and an uncounted amount of hours doing homework. It was just too much with my workload this semester. So I am putting it off until next fall(or in the summer if it is offered). I am hoping to not get the same teacher. Some of the other teachers do not require all the work with the wire(which was making my hands break out and swell). 

The Crush Party last night was so much fun. I love all of my ADPi sisters so much. They are my family here in Hattiesburg and I don't know what I would do without them.

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Home Sweet Home

I moved into my apartment last week. And though it is small and not top of the line, I love it. It is so good to finally have a place to call my own. I have slowly gotten some unpacking done and I have been reorganizing the furniture until it is just to my liking.
What was supposed to be a couple hours of organizing and "home-ifying" last night turned into staying up until 2 am putting up shelves and making everything seem more like home. It's beautiful in its simplistic way and I love it!
The guest bedroom is still a mess of boxes and chaos but it will be taken care eventually. I will get it done before March even if I have to stay up into the wee hours of the morning (again).
School has been challenging so far this semester but, for some odd reason, I am enjoying it. Well, I take that back. I am not enjoying ART 113 and all the wire sculptures I have been making. But this too shall pass and I will be stronger afterwards. :)
My favorite classes so far are my World Lit. class and my history class, which really isn't that surprising for me. As long as we don't start reading poems or anything, I will be fine!

Well, I am off to work on some more homework!

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Here's your update, Honey!

Well, honey told me to update. So here it is...
I survived my mini-session and got an A out of it! :)
I'm really glad I did it. It was amazing to get that class out of the way in a week rather than a semester. And now I feel like this semester and summer school will be a breeze after going doing that class.
I found an apartment! It is practically on campus. It doesn't look like much on the outside but it is nice on the inside, and for that price I am not complaining! I will get the keys tomorrow as long as they get dad's signature back quickly enough. Which means I'll probably be living in there for a few days without furniture.
It is really a blessing that the timing worked out this way. I was already planning on going home for the weekend for Poppa's birthday. And it will be a great time to bring a truck load of furniture and things back since we have Monday off. I'm not sure how I will like living completely by myself but we shall see!

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