Our Anniversary Universal Studios Trip

Our Anniversary Universal Studios Trip

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Our Anniversary Day Trip to Universal Studios

February 25th marks a special day for us – our anniversary! This year, we celebrated 30 years together and 24 years of marriage. The day began with roses, breakfast in bed, and exchanging heartfelt cards.

For our 30/24 anniversary, we chose a simple yet exciting day trip to Universal Studios Orlando. As Universal Orlando Annual Passholders (UOAP), we often find ourselves drawn to this magical place for our monthly travels. It's our go-to spot for fun and relaxation, and our anniversary was the perfect excuse to visit again.

We had dinner reservations at Bigfire, a place that always impresses us with its food and service. We kicked things off with drinks – I enjoyed a refreshing Lakeside Punch while my husband sipped on a Blackberry Citrus. Then came our usual appetizer, the Bourbon cheese fondue with gluten-free bread – absolutely delicious!

For our main course, we decided to switch things up. My husband savored the Dutch Oven Beef Burgundy, and I opted for the Bell and Evans Maple Chicken. I'm usually not a fan of chicken breast, but this dish was moist, tender, and bursting with flavor. A pleasant surprise indeed!

Post-dinner, we strolled into the park. Being pass holders and regulars we are often in no rush to get to anything in the park. Even though we have express passes with our annual pass and are grateful to have them in case we decide to ride that day, we often skip the rides and simply enjoy the ambiance, exploring new attractions and revisiting our favorite spots.

Our first stop was the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, my personal favorite. We timed it perfectly to see the dragon breathe fire in Diagon Alley, which for those curious, it goes off every 10 minutes starting on the hour. After soaking in the atmosphere, we popped into Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes for some window shopping. We couldn't resist picking up chocolate frogs and Butterbeer Fudge – which, by the way, pairs wonderfully with a cold Butterbeer!

After leaving the Wizarding World of Harry Potter we continued our stroll around the park heading in the direction of Men in Black. It was a lovely casual stroll and during our walk, we decided to stop in at the Five and Dime to pick up our UOAP Magnets and head home before the Universal's Marti Gras parade started, with plans to skip it this trip and include it in next months visit. Well, the Universe had other plans.

We miscalculated the parade time and found ourselves amidst the festivities. my husband thought it was supposed to start at 6:30 pm, which with the plan we had just made, we would've had plenty of time to get through and out of there just before the parade started. Well, we had the time wrong... It started at 6:15 pm that day and it was 6:19 pm.

However, what was initially an oversight turned into a fun bead-catching competition between my husband and I, so fun was still had! We did eventually make our way to the Five and Dime store to pick up our UOAP Magnets after the Parade ended in Hollywood, and then we continued on our way out of the park.

Nope, not yet. As we were coming up on exiting Hollywood, the beginning of the parade was making its way back around. So we hurriedly found a spot and continued our bead-catching competition. It was a tie, we both caught eight. After the parade concluded we were able to make our way to the Exit and head to City Walk.

Before leaving City Walk we decided to Stop in one of the many Universal gift shops and pick up some swag before making our way to the parking garages and heading home. 

Disclaimer: This blog is a personal account of our experiences at Universal Studios Orlando. All opinions are my own and do not reflect the views of Universal Studios or any affiliated companies. Universal Studios, UOAP, and all related marks are trademarks of Universal Studios.

30/24th Anniversary

 

30/24th Anniversary

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Celebrating 24 Years of Marriage: A Journey from Friendship to Everlasting Love

It feels like just yesterday when my family made the move to sunny Florida, and there he was—a friend who would soon become my everything. Fast forward a few years, and we took the plunge from friends to something more; we started dating 30 years ago. And now, here we are, celebrating 24 beautiful years of marriage.

Our kids, once the center of our bustling household, have grown up and set out on their own adventures, leaving us in the quiet but exciting phase of being "empty nesters." We're embracing this time with open arms, filling our days with quality moments, embarking on new adventures, and engaging in those deep, soul-nourishing conversations that have always been a staple of our relationship. Together, we're ticking off all those dreams we used to talk about for hours on end.

I am overwhelmed with gratitude for every year, every day, every moment we've shared. He's not just an amazing husband and partner, but also a wonderful father, and my pride knows no bounds when I think of how much we've grown together. Our weirdness, our perfectly imperfect life, our rock-solid friendship, and our unconditional love for each other are the things I cherish the most.

Sure, the last 30 years haven't been flawless—because let's face it, perfection is a myth. But what I love most is our resilience, our unwavering commitment to never give up on each other, always finding a way through any challenge.

So here's to us, to 30 years of love, 24 years of marriage, and a lifetime of memories still to come. Happy Anniversary to my incredible husband, my rock, and my adventure buddy, Craig. I love you always and forever to infinity and beyond. 💖💖💖

Week ? C-19 Shelter at Home

Week ? of #ShelterAtHome for me (I've lost track…lol) and I must say that I am grateful.

Being a cost conscious SAHM/WAHM for most of my children's lives and a DIYer extraordinaire, the Shelter at Home orders have not changed my life too much. The isolation is nothing new and since my children are all grown now, homeschooling was not added to my daily routine like many others. So, my daily routine really hasn't changed too much.

I have noticed an increase in people complaining about the many inconveniences that these shelter at home orders have caused many people. Each time I run across a post or meme related to said inconveniences, I'm reminded of how grateful I am that these are not added issues in my personal life. So, what exactly am I grateful for?

I'm grateful for my natural hair that doesn't need to be bleached or colored, I'm grateful that I know how to cut not only my own hair but my husband's as well. I'm grateful that I have been doing my own nails for many years now, so I am quite capable of giving myself a beautiful manicure and pedicure at home. I'm grateful that I already have everything that I would need to pamper myself and have a nice, relaxing spa day in the safety of my own home.  Which can really help with my anxiety during these uncertain times (because we all haven't heard that phrase like a million times already…)

I'm grateful that I know how to cook and the fact that I have always cooked at home 98% of the time, that this whole having to cook every day is no big change for me and feels perfectly normal. I'm grateful that we have the ability to still have access to our essential needs like food! I'm grateful that we have the ability to order those essentials online and schedule them for pick-up and even have them delivered right to our door without ever having to step foot inside the store. I'm well aware that not everyone around the world has this luxury… I'm also grateful for our little garden we had just started right before all this started happening!

I'm grateful that I can always find something productive to do, to keep myself busy and occupied all by myself. I'm grateful for all the modern amenities that we have today, that didn't exist during most all the previous pandemics in our human history (there's been like 20). Today we have TVs, computers, and tablets with high-speed internet, smartphones that are like mini-computers that fit in the palm of our hands. The ability to talk and even video chat with our loved ones all around the world in real-time!!

I'm grateful that although majorly flawed and far from perfect that the US government has at least attempted to lessen the financial burden that this current pandemic is having on so many citizens and businesses that are deemed non-essential. More definitely needs to be done, but I'm not going to dive down that rabbit hole…

I'm grateful that my husband, although deemed essential, has the ability to protect himself and practice social distancing while still working. I'm also grateful that my husband is taking this so seriously and that he decontaminates himself when he gets home to try and lessen exposure to me, because I am high risk with a compromised immune system due to autoimmune diseases.

This is just a small list of all the things I am grateful for because there really are so many things for all of us to be grateful for! You just have to stop, take a few deep breaths, and shift your perspective of the situation. I know it can be hard to do for some... It can be quite difficult to see past all the doom and gloom of the current situation. As we start to go back to our "new normal" as states and cities start opening back up in phases, remember to be humble and kind as we are all trying to get used to this. Also, please listen to the experts on how we can all work together to lessen the spread of this virus. Finally please try and remember that this is temporary and we will come out on the other side of this and recover from our losses.

Love and Light!

I lost my last living Grandparent…

My heart is broken

On April 6th, 2020 at around 9:30pm my last living grandparent passed away in a nursing home... He had just been tested for Covid-19 after a staff member at the facility had tested positive and my Grandfather started showing symptoms including a high fever. We had been impatiently waiting to hear the results of his test hoping that it was going to be negative. On April 9th is test results came back and unfortunately it was in-fact positive...

My 82-year-old grandfather died alone, without his family by his side locked in a nursing home because of this Covid-19 virus, yet another victim of this pandemic... An article in the Delaware Business Now listed him as an "82-year-old male long-term care resident from New Castle County." Like he was just another statistic... This really bothered me.., he is not just another statistic! He was a human being from our most vulnerable group and he was/is loved!

At the time my Grandfather passed, his roommate was also showing signs of the virus and unfortunately passed about a week later on April 12th… My grandfathers' partner of 40 years was also in the same facility and on April 24th she passed away, she also tested positive for COVID-19…

I'm grateful that I was able to visit with him during my last visit to Delaware in October. I'm saddened to know, that was my last visit as I was hoping to visit again on our next trip up that we were planning this coming Fall... I'm heartbroken for the rest of the family that have lost their father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, husband/partner, friend...etc.

 💔 PLEASE listen to the Doctors, Scientist and Specialist! You know the ones who ACTUALLY know what they're talking about! Please follow the rules and guidelines that have been put in place to flatten the curve and protect our most vulnerable!!

Random Thoughts 3-1-2018

So next month is my birthday and It's the big 40!! As I try and prepare myself for this milestone I have been doing research on how to naturally care for my mind, body and health as a "mature" woman...lol..! One of the subjects that pops up a lot is "how to dress your age" and "how to dress trendy at 40"... Blah, blah, blah... Well, I have read these articles and looked at the pictures of examples and my opinion is fuck that!!! 

I am a grown ass woman who will wear whatever I am comfortable in and the age fashion police can kiss my ass!! 💋 I will wear my hoops, I will wear my bodycon mini skirts ( At 4'11.75" they are just regular skirts on me...), I will wear my tight skinny legged jeans, I will even bust out my bootcuts If I'm in the mood that day! I will continue to wear my thigh high's and heels that I've had since I was in my 20's, I will wear my hair in any style I feel like (yes I will still rock the pigtails!) and I will do my make-up however choose! 

I feel we as women have earned our right to wear whatever the hell we want to without people telling us what is appropriate for our "age"... I do feel there are a few rules that ALL women should follow to make any style look good..ie "Just because it zips doesn't mean it fits", wearing clothing that actually fits you properly looks 1000% better then sqeezing yourself into a size or two smaller. The goal is to look cute/sexy (depending on your goal) looking like the sausage casing broke and you're squeezing out all over the place is NOT cute or sexy.... Or if you're in the mood to "flaunt" your body, pick one. I personally think it looks classier when you only showcase one part of the body at a time like your shoulders OR your cleavage OR your midriff...etc. I also believe subtle is key to keeping it classy. 

Of course these are just my opinions and a few rules I like to follow. At the end of the day if you are over the age of 18 and fully incharge of how you dress your body you do you! Age is just a number representing how long we've been alive on this earth in this lifetime, it does not represent how old we are in our minds! I have a young mind (my body doesn't always feel young though...lol). My mind stopped aging at about 16 when I got pregnant with my son. Although I've continued to mature and grow as a person I still FEEL like I'm 16!! So, some mornings it's a big shock to the system when I look in the mirror and don't see that 16 year old me staring back at me...lmao😂 Okay, I think I'm done rambling...lol!😂 Hope everyone of you have an amazing day, Love and Light💖