Jenn & The Mouse

Mickey Cookie Brownie Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

2011-08-09T10:53:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I can't take credit for this recipe, but I love it so much that I found an excuse to make it "Mickey" so I could blog about it. I absolutely love the cupcakes, but the chocolate marshmallow frosting is the best! Definitely a must-try, Mickey-style or not!

The Recipe

The recipe for Cookie Brownie Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting can be found here (clicky). It is a recipe by talented (and hilarious) Cookbook Queen. I definitely recommend subscribing to her blog, there are so many great recipes!

To make these delicious cupcakes "Mickey Style", just take 2 chocolate wafers (or any other circular treat) and make the ears! I used Wiltons Mint Chocolate Candy Melts.

The Review

As I mentioned, I already knew I'd love the cupcakes. The recipe is delicious and the icing is addictive. I could make a batch of this icing and just eat it (well, I could do that with any icing, but this icing is the best). Here's the picture!

I think the ears look cute. Not totally Mickey, but it still makes me smile! I hope you enjoy (and definitely check out Confessions of a Cookbook Queen)

Chocolate-Mint Mickey Cupcakes

2011-08-06T21:01:00.000-04:00

Sorry this blog post has taken so long to get together, but it's been a busy few weeks! I'm still on the hunt for a job, but I've kept busy with friends, family, and wedding photos!

So, on July 23rd a couple of old Disney CM's from Epcot decided to get back together for a Disney Games Night! Due to the special occaision, I knew I had to make something delicious! I'd read a recipe for Fudge Brownie Cupcakes with White Chocolate Frosting on Confessions of a Cookbook Queen, and so I decided to modify it to make Chocolate-Mint Mickey Cupcakes!

See, the cupcake is a Hidden Mickey!

The Ingredients

Yep, baking in Mickey PJs!

Box of brownie mix, plus ingredients to make them according to the box
One extra egg
1 bag of Wiltons Mint Chocolate Melts
1 stick salted butter, at room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
Candy Sticks
20-30 Chocolate Timbits (donut holes)

The Instructions

The Brownie Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350 and line muffin cups with cupcake liners.
Make brownie mix according to the box and add an extra egg.
Fill prepared muffin cups 1/3 full. You should get about 15-18 brownies.
Push one mint chocolate melt into each cupcake until it is level with the batter.
Bake 20 minutes or so, until brownies bounce back when lightly touched.
Remove from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack. While cooling, prepare the ears and frosting.

The Frosting

In a microwave safe bowl microwave pour in some of the Wilton melts and microwave according to the directions on the package. Don't worry if you add too many, you'll use them for the ears.
Let the chocolate cool.
Add the butter and cream to a bowl and beat on medium low speed with an electric mixer until smooth.
Add powdered sugar and beat on medium until smooth.
Add "some" melts and beat on medium-high until light and fluffy. Use your judgement to determine the amount. You can start with a little and add more until you like the flavour and consistency. I ended up adding extra icing sugar as well.

The Ears

Cut enough candy sticks in half so that you have 2 per cupcake.
Add more Wilton melts to the bowl and microwave according to the directions on the package.
Dip one end of the candy stick into the Wilton melts, and insert it in a Timbit (see picture).
Let all of the Timbits cool.
If you'd like you can then dip the Timbits in the melts, which is more work but will give a more consistent look. I was too lazy.

The Review

First, the picture:

These cupcakes were delicious! The mint icing worked really well, and the Wilton melts added some strength to the icing so that it didn't melt in the heat (like a traditional buttercream). If I wasn't in a rush and lazy, I definitely would have dipped the Timbits. I think that would have looked better.

The only problem with the cupcakes was that the "ears" were heavy and would fall down after awhile. You might not want to add them until they are ready to be served.

Hope you like them, I'm in a cupcake baking phase so there's probably going to be a couple of versions of Mickey cupcakes!

Dole Whip (Magic Kingdom)

2011-07-21T14:22:00.006-04:00

Dole Whips are amazing. I'm sad to say I'd never tried them until my CRP program, but now I'm addicted. It's the true sign that you're home when you're eating a Dole Whip and wandering around the Magic Kingdom. It's one of the few places in the world where you can get this magnificent treat. That's why I was so surprised to find that the at-home recipe was so simple!

Rob adding the sugar before blending

The Ingredients

2 cans (20 oz. each) DOLE Crushed Pineapple
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

The Instructions

Part I

Drain crushed pineapple, reserving 2 tablespoons of the juice.
Place pineapple, lemon juice, lime juice, sugar and reserved pineapple juice in blender or food processor container.
Cover and blend until smooth.
Pour into two 1-quart freezer zipped bags.
Store bags flat in freezer. Freeze about 1-1/2 hours or until slushy.

Part II

When everything is slushy...

Pour whipping cream into large bowl and whip
Stir pineapple slush into whipped cream until just blended
Return mixture to freezer until completely frozen (about 1 hour)
Enjoy the deliciousness!

The Review

Well, to start off let's look at the comparison: Jenn's Dole Whip, and Disney's!

Clearly, there is one big difference... mine isn't quite soft-serve. This is just because I left it in the freezer for a longer time. If you take it out of the freezer and let it sit, it will become soft again. That being said, I never really waited for it to become soft serve because it's so good! This is definitely going to be re-created for the next Disney Games Night!

Edited August 6th: I've made this recipe again, and when you don't over-freeze it, the recipe is perfect! We served it at the Disney Games Night complete with Dole Pinapple Juice and it was just like we were at the Magic Kingdom!

Prime Time Pot Roast (50’s Prime Time Café)

2011-07-20T13:10:00.048-04:00

Whenever we're looking for somewhere to eat at Hollywood Studios I always suggest the 50’s Prime Time Café. I love the food and the atmosphere! And whever I have to decide what to order, I always order the same thing: Prime Time Pot Roast. So for our Disney Staycation, there's no guessing why I chose to re-create this fantastic Disney dish.

Rob with his Prime Time Pot Roast

The Ingredients

5 lbs Top or bottom round roast
1½ c Dry red wine
1 Onion, ~~diced~~ cut into thin strips
2 Carrots, peeled and ~~diced~~ cut into thin strips
1 stalk celery, ~~diced~~ cut into thin strips
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 c Beef Bouillon
¼ c Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

The Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.
Season the meat with salt and pepper, brown the meat on all sides.
Remove the meat to a roasting pan, and pour the wine around the meat.
Sauté the cut vegetables until golden brown and add to the roasting pan.
Pour the beef bouillon over the roast.
Add the garlic to the pan and cover.
Cook 30-45 minutes per pound. Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes.

Serve alongside your favourite starch (or if you want it exactly like the 50's Prime Time Cafe, serve it over skins-on mashed potatoes).

The Review

Amazing! Just look at the two side by side!

There are a couple of small differences:

The carrots and celery from Disney are a little "fresher". To remedy this consider waiting to add your veggies until the last 60-90 minutes.
The Disney gravy is a little thicker. I made my gravy by dissolving a couple of tablespoons of cornstarch in water, adding it to the juices in a saucepot, and letting it all boil down to thicken up. I was kind of hungry and wanted to eat quickly, so I guess I just didn't let it boil down enough.
The Disney pot roast is a little more tender. I cooked mine for 30 minutes per pound and then stuck a meat thermometer in to see if it was "done". I freaked a little inside when the temperature was way past well done. Silly newbie mistake. If you have the right cut of meat, pot roasts get more tender as they cook. Some recipes suggest leaving the pot roast to cook for an hour at a temperature of 180F. So don't worry about the temperature, and go by fork-tenderness (or tummy rumblings).

Overall, this was a fantastic entree! My Dad loved it so much he asked for the recipe!

Pineapple Coconut Bread ('Ohana)

2011-07-19T13:05:00.000-04:00

I love all of the food at 'Ohana, but one of my favourite things is the bread! When I saw this recipe I was a little cautious because I've never made bread before, but Rob encouraged me to try!

The Ingredients

Pineapple/Coconut Mixture

1 C. Crushed pineapple
1 C. Unsweetened coconut
1 C. Sugar
2 T. Cornstarch

Dough

1 3/4 C. Water
1 Egg Yolk
2 T. Shortening
4 1/2 C. High Gluten Flour (I substituted Bread Flour)
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/3 C Sugar
1 T. Instant Yeast

The Instructions

Pinapple/Coconut Mixture

Combine pineapple and coconut in bowl.
Combine sugar and cornstarch in separate bowl and mix well.
Add sugar and cornstarch mixture into pineapple and coconut mixture and mix well (with beaters?).
Refrigerate for 1 hour.

Dough

Combine all ingredients in order of recipe in mixing bowl, and mix with dough hook until dough picks up on hook and the sides of the mixing bowl is clean. (Rob and I did this by hand... no bulky stand mixers for us!)
Let dough rise until it doubles in size.
Roll out dough onto a floured surface until it is 2 inches thick.
Next spread pineapple/coconut mixture over the top of the dough.
Fold dough into itself and place in a greased 9" x 13" cake pan.
Cut dough into pieces with a pizza cutter and spread out cut pieces evenly in cake pan.
Let dough rise in warm oven (110 degrees F) - about half way up the pan.
Bake at 325 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
Let bread cool, cut and serve.

The Review

The picture above looks really delicious (well, it tasted really delicious)... until you compare it to what the real 'Ohana bread looks like...

Photo of 'Ohana Bread from the Disney Food Blog

Where did I go wrong? I mostly followed the instructions (I didn't follow the part with the stand mixer because I didn't have a stand mixer. I did it the old fashioned way... by hand).

I'm going to start out blaming the flour. I did substitute bread flour instead of high-gluten flour but from what I understand (from Google) that's not a big problem. What likely was a problem was the age of the flour. Let's just say I found it at my Dad's house, and I don't think he ever bakes (I know, flameful).

But even excluding the flour problem, the pineapple and coconut to bread ratio was still much higher in my bread when compared to the real stuff. There were chunks of pineapple in my bread. I'm starting to think that by "mix well" they meant with beaters or something that would smooth out the mixture... rather than this.

I'm also wondering if we didn't let our bread rise enough... we were kind of in a rush because we needed the oven for the pot roast. Next time I'm going to be a little bit more careful about how I judge whether it has "doubled in size".

Despite my complaining, it really was delicious. We were a loaf down before dinner even started, and we kept commenting that it would make great breakfast muffins. I had some for breakfast the other day and I have to agree, it was a really good breakfast treat.

I'm going to have to try this again with better measuring tools (did I mention my Dad only had a 1/2 teaspoon, and a 2-cup and 4-cup Pyrex?), newer flour, and better mixed pineapple... I'll let you know how it turns out! Until then, if you have any bread making tips, be sure to share them!

Honey Lime Dressing ('Ohana)

2011-07-18T11:16:00.002-04:00

For my first recipe review I'll start with something simple, Honey Lime Dressing from Ohana's!

The Ingredients

1/2 cup honey
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup diced white onion
1 cup canola oil

The Instructions

Add everything but the canola oil to a blender or food processor and mix until smooth.
Slowly drizzle canola oil until well blended

The Review

This was delicious! I wouldn't worry about exact amounts for the ingredients and would just add/subtract to taste. I ended up adding extra honey, because I like things sweet.

Also, I'm not very kitchen savvy, so I wasn't exactly sure what they meant by "slowly drizzle..." I just added some and mixed. In the end if you refrigerate it for awhile it will separate like any dressing. Just make sure to mix or shake it before serving.

This makes a lot of dressing, so if you're only feeding a few people I would consider halving or even quartering it!

Enjoy!

Disney Staycation

2011-07-17T17:31:00.011-04:00

It's been a very busy couple of months! This April Rob and I had our wedding and honeymoon (Hawaii, not Disney), and in June I had my MBA Convocation. In between I've been applying for jobs and just thinking about our future.

With all of this uncertainty in our future we can't even begin to think about when we'll get to make our next trip to Disney. So we were starting to get a little antsy and missed Disney even more. That's when I came up with a great idea... a Disney staycation.

When we go to Disney we always have our video camera on hand to film the shows, fireworks, and other special memories, so we thought we'd spend an evening watching some of our home movies. To add to the Disney Magic I thought I'd try to recreate some of our favourite Disney foods from the Disney Recipe Exchange.

Here's how it turned out! The menu consisted of:

Pineapple Coconut Bread (Ohana's)

Salad with Honey-Lime Dressing (Ohana's) and
Pot Roast (50's Prime Time Cafe)

(Extra Frozen) Dole Whip (from the Magic Kingdom)

While eating these delicious treats we enjoyed watching Beauty and the Beast, Fantasmic, Wishes, the new Castle Lights Display (which I've never seen in person, but my Dad recorded when he was there in January), Illuminations, and the Move-It, Shake-It, Celebrate-It Parade (from the trip where Rob proposed).

I must admit, it did the trick! It really felt like a mini-vacation to Disney (with more shows and fireworks than you could ever cram into one day).  Our Disney Staycation also inspired me to repurpose this blog. Rather than just detailling our trips to Disney Rob and I will now be blogging about how we keep the Disney Magic in our everyday lives through unique ideas and recipes!

What do you think?  How do you add Pixie Dust to your daily routine? Stay tuned for more updates, including detailed reviews and recipes from our Staycation!

Leaving Commons

2009-07-11T10:33:00.001-04:00

July 10th was the day I had to leave The Commons. I got up early, finished packing the car, took my final pictures of Commons, handed in my ID's, and received my package. When you complete your program you receive a letter recognizing your employement, your final paycheck, your relocation reimbursemet, and a program certificate.

After leaving Commons I met up with Heather (my old roomie) who checked me into the Animal Kingdom Lodge. My mom wasn't flying in until Saturday, and I figured if I was going to spend one last day at Disney, why not spend it in a savannah view room?

When Heather left I had some free time to properly pack my car (I had to vacuum pack things so that we could fit my mom's stuff), but fortunately, I didn't have to spend the night by myself! Alison was free and was willing to join me for the night. We went to dinner at Boma and then spent the evening watching the sun set over the savannah. It was a perfect end to a wonderful program.

Last Park Day

2009-07-11T10:01:00.000-04:00

July 9th was the middle day... we didn't have to work, but we didn't have to leave yet. So Rebecca and I decided to spend the day visiting our favourite spots, and saying goodbye to Disney.

We started the day, not at Disney, but Geocaching. Geocaching involves finding a small container hidden somewhere. There's always something hidden inside these geocaches, and Rebecca wanted to add something special. This geocache was located just outside of The Commons.

After finding the geocache we drove to Epcot. We rode Spaceship Earth one last time and went to recreate our Magical Moment during Orientation, when we were welcomed as new Epcot Cast Members.

We went to say our final goodbyes and thank you's to our managers and then said goodbye to backstage Epcot. I don't think I'll ever have a reason (or excuse) to go back there again.

After Epcot, we headed to the Magic Kingdom for parades, rides, and shows. In the evening we had reservations for a final dinner at Citricos. It was delicious! I had the chicken and a mango creme brulee!

After dinner it was back to the Magic Kingdom for a couple more rides (you know I had to max out Buzz Lightyear's again), and then our final Wishes. The only problem was, after Wishes I didn't want to leave. Then SpectroMagic started so we stayed for that, but Rebecca and I still didn't want to leave. We stood by the Castle, took pictures, and were eventually dragged out by David and Ali. It was so hard to leave.

After leaving our last park, we headed back to the Commons for a pool party, and packed to get ready to leave. You have to be out of Commons by noon on Friday so there wasn't much time to prepare. Packing was sad and lonely. Heather had already moved into Patterson Court, so I was all alone in the apartment. It looked so empty! It would have been unbearable, but I knew there was still lots to look forward to in the upcoming weeks!

Last Day of Work

2009-07-11T09:46:00.001-04:00

July 8th was my last day of work (and I was a 10:15 to boot)! Linda was our manager, and she let us pick our sections! The Northwest Territories (easiest section) was already taken, so I chose Nova Scotia (another three 4-top section).

After getting the restaurant ready, we sat down for our last pre-meal. Instead of the typical pre-meal, Linda decided that we would each write down the reasons why we're going to miss those of us on our last shift. It was such a kind gesture, and definitely made me cry!

My last shift went really well, with amazing Guests. It could be that I was just plain lucky, or I was seeing the job through rose-coloured glasses because I knew how much I'd miss this. The best table, however, was my last table. Since the restaurant was slowing down I got to chatting with them, and they asked how long I'd been working for Disney. I ended up telling them that they were my last table on my last shift, and they were honoured! I mentioned that my "sing out" would be soon, and they decided to stay (past their dessert) as a show of support!

A sing-out is one of the most difficult things. Everyone who is working their last shift is asked to stand on the fireplace, and say their name and where they are from. Then, the entire restaurant sings O' Canada, our national anthem. Typically, many other CRP's will come into the restuarant to sing their friends out, even if they aren't working. For our sing-out, as there were five of us leaving, there were two lines from the fireplace all the way to the exit ramp with other CRP's there to show support.

I look like I'm smiling here, but it's really self preservation.

I didn't just cry, I balled.

After the song, everyone comes one by one to say goodbye, and often more tears ensue.

(Notice the red eyes)

Oh yes, then afterwards you have to finish serving your Guests, and bank out.

Usually this is accompanied by more tears and hugs.

Then we changed out of our costumes, returned them, checked out of our lockers, and returned to Le Cellier for dinner with friends.

After dinner we headed backstage for some more photos and to see the beautiful sunset.

After sunset, there was only time for the Canada movie (and more tears) and Illuminations.

As we headed out of Epcot that wasn't the end of the tears, as I still had my throw-out to do!

You'd think that because I was driving home I wouldn't have much to give away, but I had almost a full car load full of stuff! We just started giving away things, as fast as possible, but then took time for the important things. This "Minnie" was for F&B Heather.

(Note: I'm wearing the T-shirts from our throw-in)

At the end, as we always do, we sang O'Canada... this time we got everyone leaving to join us.

RENT!

2009-07-07T23:52:00.008-04:00

July 7th was an entire day spent with my roomie... Heather! Around Christmas we'd found out that Rent was coming to Tampa, starring the original Mark and Roger! So, naturally, we booked the time off and bought tickets. Having a day off on your last week is unusual, but because I'd booked it off so far in advance it was allowed.

The show wasn't until the evening, but since we both had the day off we decided to make the most of it by taking the day to explore Clearwater! We wandered along the beach, went into the shops (they have some outrageous t-shirts there), and just enjoyed the Florida sunshine.

Then, of course, for a nice lunch/dinner we headed to Cracker Barrel! Conveniently, Heather was seated next to a picture of heather.

The show was AMAZING. Anthony Rapp and Adam Pascal had all of the magic they have in the movie, but it's the theatrical version, so it's just better!

After the show, Heather (being a theatre guru) suggested we rush to the Cast Entrance to see if we could get some autographs (and photos)! We were so lucky, we got autographs with a good portion of the cast including Angel, Maureen, and Mark (Anthony Rapp). I can't even describe how excited we were to meet him. Just look at the awesome photos!

This was an amazing day, and definitely worth the wait! I'm so glad we got to have one more roomie adventure!

Hollywood Studios and a Throw-Out

2009-07-07T09:13:00.003-04:00

July 5th began my final week working at Le Cellier. For your final week you are on "time card". During this time you don't clock in or out, your hours are set in advance so that your paycheque can be ready for you when you check out of housing. During your final week they only schedule you for AM's (if you're a server) so that you can spend the rest of the day packing, and preparing to leave.

In my case, "preparing to leave" meant visiting the Disney parks and restaurants as much as I could! So after work Heather (F&B) and I headed over to Hollywood Studios! We started off by exploring, a place I'd never been before in Hollywood Studios... Sid's! I know that sounds strange, a place I'd never been before, but I'd actually never bothered to explore the shop by the exit! It turns out, Sid's has tons of collectibles, including a picture of Cinderella signed by Ilene Woods (the voice of Cinderella). I think I'm in love. I may be back soon to buy this.

After exploring Sid's we headed to the 50's Prime Time Cafe for our dinner reservations! This is always one of my favourite places to eat. The food is delicious, and the servers are hilarious. Heather and I split the onion rings, and I had the pot roast. I'm proud to say we both polished off our entrees and received "special" clean plate stickers (aka masking tape with "Clean Plate" written on it).

Then we headed off towards Fantasmic (though we took a photo with TOT and our awesome stickers first). While waiting for the show, Heather surprised me with a glow in the dark purse charm! She got herself a Tinkerbell one, and I me a Mickey one. LOVE!

After Fantasmic we made our way back to The Commons for a Throw-Out. Throw-Outs are generally sad, but this one was one of the worst as it was for Eric, Kristen, Emily, and Angele... people from my arrival group!

A Throw-Out is never a happy thing.

By July 6th I'd already made the decision to purchase the Cinderella picture, so Heather and I visited Hollywood Studios again. But before making our big purchases we decided to meet some of the characters from "Up". So much fun!

After dropping off our purchases safely in our appartment we headed over to the Polynesian for a "Goodbye Dinner" at Ohana's. The dinner was perfectly timed so that we got to watch the fireworks from the restaurant, that's definitely something I'm going to miss... that's in addition to all of the delicious food, and Pina Colava's (a Pina Colada with raspberry puree... yummy)!

After dinner we went to my final Games Night! It was pretty epic, with some awesome "Apples to Apples", and other games. Overall, it was a fantastic two days, but I still can't believe I'm in my final week at Disney, and I only have one shift left!

The Fourth of July

2009-07-05T22:03:00.005-04:00

To be honest, I'm writing this 2 years later, so I don't really remember what I did July 2nd and 3rd. There's no photos to look back on, so I'm just going to assume I was working.

July 4th is Independence Day in the US, and luckily I had it off! Rebecca and I decided that this would be a great opportunity to view the amazing fireworks show at the Magic Kingdom. So we got up very early to make sure we could get into the park!

We spent the day enjoying the park, and even got to see the newly opened Hall of Presidents! We grabbed lots of snacks throughout the day, and even got to eat at the Chineese food place in Tomorrowland. I'm always eager to see it open, because it's SO good! Just check out my beef and broccoli, egg roll, and iced green tea... mmmm.

After grabbing our delicious dinner we decided to stake out a spot in front of the Castle for the fireworks. People line up earlier than usual on holidays, this is the photo at 7:30pm, a full hour and a half before the show!

Fortunately, we were prepared with Disney trivia cards to keep us entertained during our long wait. But the wait was definitely worth it! The fireworks were amazing! The show was almost 15 minutes, and fireworks were set off from several locations surrounding the Castle and Main Street USA.

When the fireworks ended, Rebecca and I made a run for the exit, because we knew that the Epcot fireworks would be starting only 45 minutes later and we wanted to see if we could make both shows. We were lucky, and squeaked in just as Illuminations started. Since the Independence Day fireworks followed Illuminations, we hadn't missed anything. The fireworks at Epcot weren't quite as big as the ones at the Magic Kingdom, but they were all set up to highlight the American Adventure pavillion, which was really neat. Definitely not something I've ever seen before! I loved it!

Canada Day

2009-07-02T17:37:00.000-04:00

Canada Day is a very special day to me, not only because it's a celebration of Canada, but because it's the day Rob and I had our first date! And so, on our first anniversary we found ourselves thousands of miles apart... but that didn't stop us from celebrating!

Canada Day is a fantastic day to be a Cultural Representative! You're in Florida, with so many great Canadians, and you get to celebrate in Disney!

Our day started out with a pancake and mimosa brunch at Julie's!

Eventually, we all shuttled off to Epcot to enjoy the rest of the day. Once in Epcot, we headed straight to the Canada Pavilllion, which was decked out in flags from all of the provinces and territories, and of course, our national flag!

But that wasn't the only special trick Mickey had up his sleeve. They planned a party in the break trailer for all Cast Members (whether working that day or not), so we all enjoyed hamburgers, hot dogs, and ice cream courtesy of The Mouse!

As with every couple of Wednesday's, we also had a sing-out for Cast Members leaving. This time it was Mercedes and Cherish.

Then, we started our tour of the world. One of the best things about doing this as a group, was running into all of the other groups of Canadians doing the same thing!

After the tour, we returned to Canada (which is generally not recommended) to listen to our favourite band, Off Kilter, and watch Illuminations! Then it was time to head home... but the party didn't stop!

Disney Graduation

2009-06-30T14:39:00.027-04:00

June 25th was our Disney Graduation (and Graduation for anyone leaving in the Summer/Early Fall). This meant Heather and Bryce were graduating too! Disney organizes a bus to Graduation, but fortunately Bryce offered to drive us in!

Graduation is an awesome celebration! There were artists ready to do your charicature, Mickey and Minnie there for pictures, flags from every country, a delicious breakfast, and of course... our ear hats!

Yep, my characture was me in a bikini, on a beach, with a guy drooling... very Disney (?!).

After Graduation was over we headed into the Magic Kingdom for a photo shoot, and to get our ear hats embroidered (they do it for free)!

Next up, we headed to Le Cellier for lunch. As always, I got the Prime Rib Burger. I just really love the ketchup-relish. I don't like ketchup, but to me, this stuff is like pure deliciousness. Whenever I work a MID (which is pretty often) this is what I eat. Then we went around the pavillion, saw the Canada Movie (cried) and took some pictures.

Following the photo shoot Rebecca, Lyndsay, and I went on a shopping trip to prepare for a Star Wars themed party. The two already had a Star Wars cook book, and tons of recipes they wanted to try, so it was just time to get the ingredients. We made a Star Wars cake, Yoda Soda, Wookie Cookies, Tie Fighter Ties, Princess Leah Buns, Light Saber Popcicles, and more, watched movies, and had a Star Wars Guess Who? tournament. It was so much fun!

June 27th I worked an AM, and then went to a Candlelight Reunion Dinner at Trails End. It was really amazing, because everyone was so kind! They scheduled it before I left, so we could all say goodbye, paid for my dinner, and I even received a Tinkerbell figurine to remind me to "Let My Dreams Blossom", even when I return to Canada. I'm really going to miss these people!

After dinner I met up with Lyndsay to start celebrating her birthday! People didn't end up going out, so we stayed in, played DDR and Sing Star with a couple of friends. Just one comment: Craig is an awesome singer!

June 29th I was only supposed to work an AM, but I offered to extend because they needed someone to, and I'm starting to realise that I only have a few more days of work, so I might as well earn money while I can. Heather was frustrated after work, so we went to my place to relax. We had everything girls need: popcicles, icing with smarties, and cheap wine.

The Middle of June

2009-06-24T14:35:00.000-04:00

After every vacation there's always a period of work... that's really not that interesting, so I'll skip over that. The only really interesting thing that happened was that a whole bunch of girls went on a cruise (with some of their boyfriends) and Rebecca came back engaged! Andrew had proposed on the Disney Cruise... so romantic!

So June 14th was one of my first "days off" since my vacation. Rebecca and I woke up relatively early and went for a nice swim in Patterson Court. It's nice there because the pool is rectangular and good for swimming laps.

Then we headed off to the Grand Floridian for High Tea with Heather (to celebrate Rebecca's engagement of course!) High Tea was fantastic! We had our choice of tea (I went with a Princess Tea, of course), sandwhiches, champagne, and desserts! I really felt like royalty.

After tea we went to the Magic Kingdom and made it just in time for the Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It Parade! It was so much fun! Then we headed off to Fantasyland where we were able to meet the Princesses and chat about our various Prince Charmings! I was so excited to meet Cinderella!

Edit Afterward: As of June 2011 Rebecca is married to Andrew, I married Rob (he proposed at Disney), and Heather and Jeremy are engaged (a Le Cellier proposal!) So cute!

After visiting the Princesses, we continued to go on rides and enjoy the Magic Kingdom, and stayed for Spectro Magic and Wishes! I got to see Cinderella again :)

June 15th was my second day off, and a pretty relaxing day. I joined Alison and Rebecca for a nice meal at Sanaa again (this time lunch). It was delicious, as usual. I tried my mango burger again, with a mango smoothie. I think I'm in love with this restaurant. I know Le Cellier is popular, but I think I almost love Sanaa more! After lunch I drove Rebecca to work, went home, and just relaxed.

June 16th I was scheduled for a MID, but was starting to get the feelings of a cold. By the end of the morning shift I was let go for the PM (someone stayed for me), and I went home to sleep.

June 17th I had to call in sick because I was feeling horrible. I managed to make it to Publix to buy a thermometer, popcicles, juice, and soup... and shortly after realized that I was running a pretty bad fever.

June 18th I was feeling a little better, but since I work with food I called in. I wanted to be fully recovered so that I don't get anyone sick, and I don't get sick again. This "sick" experience wasn't fun!

Visiting Canada

2009-06-12T13:03:00.001-04:00

My working trend continued June 1st through the 4th, and then I had another adventure planned!

June 5th I flew home for a special person (Rob's) birthday! Rob met me in Buffalo (as he always does), and we stopped at Tim Hortons (as always). We had some time to kill so we relaxed, and walked around the Mac campus for awhile before the guests started arriving. The first guests to arrive were Jetty and Mel, Rob's best friend and his girlfriend. We started the night off right with dinner at Lazy Flamingo, and then drinking ensued as more people joined the party!

June 6th was a day spent with my family! We got up fairly early, considering the previous night, and met my Dad for a walk around Cherry Hill Gate. It was beautiful, and sort of made me excited about moving home in a little under two months. After our walk we met my grandparents for dinner at Mandarin. As always it was absolutely delicious! We were able to tell the staff that it was Rob's birthday, so he got an extra special surprise... hee hee. After dinner we went to Rob's apartment to relax, and get to bed early. We were exhausted!

June 7th was Rob's actual Birthday! Our plan was to head to Toronto to meet his brother and his brother's girlfriend. We decided to take the GO Bus in, since parking is always a problem, but the bus was so full we had to sit separately! In Toronto we decided to go to the Jays game. We chose pretty good seats, and had a fun time! Rob bought himself a jersey, and I managed to predict a home run!

After the game we got a ride back to Hamilton, got ready, and went to Beamsville to meet the whole family! Rob has two brothers and they were both there, each with their significant others. We all went to dinner at Taki's in Niagara Falls, and it was delicious! I was a little nervous about dinner with so many people (I'm from such a small family, but his family is so sweet and welcoming that there was nothing to worry about!

June 8th my Mom visited and we drove to St. Catharines to visit Brock University, one of my possible choices for an MBA program. We saw the school, and talked to the head of the Co-op program to get an idea of the program. Then, because Rob's Mom works there, we visited her office and she gave us a campus tour!

After the tour of Brock we drove around St. Catharines and Thorold to scope out some possible apartments, then headed to Grandma's. We were all supposed to have dinner together, but Rob got stuck in a traffic Jam, so my Mom had to leave before he got there. After dinner we relaxed and headed "home" to his apartment.

June 9th was my final day in Canada. Rob and I went to talk to someone about the Mac MBA program, to give both schools an equal chance. I must say, I wasn't as impressed with my Alma Matter! In the afternoon we headed off to Buffalo only to find out that my flight was delayed due to thunderstorms in Baltimore. We thought it was going to be delayed an hour maybe an hour and a half. Unfortunately it was delayed much longer, almost 6 hours, and it didn't leave until midnight. This meant I got home late, and didn't get as much sleep as I'd have liked before my next shift!

Karen's Birthday!

2009-06-01T18:38:00.001-04:00

From May 19th - 21st I spent most of the time working. It really was only fair since I'd been on several vacations lately... and was going on a couple more!

May 22 I picked Karen up from the airport for her birthday celebration! We'd booked into a cheap hotel near Old Town, so we checked in and went for lunch at the Macaroni Grill before I had to go to work (PM). I'd originally planned to main-gate Karen into the park so that she could enjoy Epcot and some fireworks while I worked, but it was pouring, so Karen opted to stay in, nap, and relax instead.

I was feeling really guilty about abandoning my cousin, so I thought I'd bring her home a special "Birthday Moose" (with my managers permission, of course). Unfortunately, my gesture was kind of overshadowed by the fact that I hit a pothole on the way home, and got a flat tire.

I really wasn't sure what to do with it, but Karen knew to put on the midget so that we could drive it to the dealership in the morning. We started to get the midget out (fortunately it had stopped raining), but were fumbling with tools when a man and his son came out from another room to help! I'm certain that Karen would have figured it out (not so sure about myself), but the men got the tire on quite efficiently! I just wish there was something we could have done for them other than express our thanks!

May 23 was Karen's official 21st birthday! We had planned to head to Epcot early, but since we needed my car to drive to Cape Canaveral the next day our plans had to be delayed while we fixed my flat. So early in the morning we drove to the dealership, Becks screaming all the way (she really didn't like the midget). It took 3 hours to get the tire fixed. Ridiculous. They weren't sure if they had the proper tire, and then had to order it, but then didn't, ugh, I don't know... it was much longer than anticipated, but c'est la vie!

Once the car was fixed we drove to the hotel and caught a taxi to Epcot. Since it was her Birthday, Karen got in for free, and we got her a pretty birthday button! We'd made reservations at Teppan Edo for lunch, so fortunately we didn't miss those! We were seated with such a nice family, who ordered us some edamame! I ordered Karen her first drink, and since it was her birthday Karen got a free dessert! She also got to enjoy her own birthday song, while wearing a chef's hat. Definitely a good lunch!

After lunch we went and "visited" all the countries, starting in Canada, occasionally buying beverages of an alcoholic nature. I got Karen a "Passport" to track our travel.

By the time we got to Norway the Florida weather had caught up with us and it started pouring, so we hid in the Church (yes, did you know that building in Norway is a Church?). We still managed to finish our tour of the world in Mexico, saw Illuminations, and then got a ride to the Commons, where we'd planned to get changed, showered, and then head out to a bar to continue the celebrations. This was the start of our realization that we're not party people. At Commons we were doing everything not to fall asleep, so we decided it would be best to just get some rest instead of partying.

May 24 was Cruise Day 1! Cruises are best described in pictures... so here they are!

We started the day early and drove to our ship

Here we checked in, explored the ship, and ate some lunch before checking into our room

As we shipped off there was a huge "Adventures Away" party on the top deck!

Then we watched the "Golden Mickeys" (a show) and went to Animator's Palate for dinner

In the evening we continued to explore the ship and take advantage of the many programs before catching a relatively early night so that we could be ready for the Bahamas in the morning!

May 25 was Cruise Day 2, a day in Nassau!

We woke up early for breakfast. You know, a healthy breakfast of biscuits, bacon, fruit, and waffles.

Then we made our way into Nassau with all of our shopping coupons, out to get some free stuff!

After collecting a whole bunch of free stuff (including a diamond necklace) we decided to head to the Hard Rock Cafe for more free stuff! Free drinks and a free sundae with the purchase of two burgers!

Look at all the free stuff!

Shortly after we made our way back to the boat (after a quick downpour), enjoyed an art auction, and got ready for our fancy dinner at Paolo's (the 18+ restaurant).

Look at all the deliciousness!

After dinner we went to see "Toy Story: The Musical" and enjoyed more Disney programming!

May 26 was Cruise Day 3, a day at Disney's Private Island, Castaway Cay!

We ate another healthy breakfast and got ready for our fun day on the island... just look at it, it's gorgeous!

We spent the morning on a hiking and kayaking excursion, and spent the afternoon relaxing on the adults-only beach in perfect serenity. Seriously... white sand, teal ocean, and nothing but blue skies!

In the evening it was dinner at Parrot Cay, and then the Pirates of the Caribbean Deck Party, complete with fireworks! Disney is the only cruise line able to launch fireworks off the ship!

We ended the night with some Karaoke... a perfect ending to a perfect day!

May 27 was Cruise Day 4, a day at sea!

This was a day of laziness! We slept in, ate a lot, and just enjoyed all of the ammenities on board.

After a relaxing day we got to watch another Broadway style show, this one even showcased Cinderella!

Then it was time for dinner, and after dinner, our server brought Karen a Birthday cake! It wasn't even a tiny one, a HUGE, family-sized cake. This was after we'd eaten all day, then finished a 3-course meal! We tried to recruit fellow Guests to help us eat it, but I think most of it went uneaten. It was pretty, though!

We spent our final evening at the young adult "dance party". I can't remember why or how, but Karen was recruited and ended up playing a role on stage to get the party started. Awesome.

May 28 was Cruise Day 5, debarkation day :(

There was no option of sleeping in, we had to eat breakfast, then make our way off of the ship.

It was sad to go, but we both agreed we need to do another Disney Cruise, it was incredible!

I dropped Karen off at the airport in the early afternoon, and then headed into work for a PM. Then I spent the rest of the month doing a similar thing... working lots of MIDs! Well, I've got to work sometime to pay for all of these vacations!

Rob's Last Visit

2009-05-20T22:49:00.008-04:00

The first week of May all I really did was work. I mean, you have to work sometime, that is what they brought me down to Florida for!

May 6th I worked an AM and then Rebecca, Alison and I had reservations for Sanaa. I fell in love. The only reason we'd booked reservations is that one of our old managers, Brandon, left to work as an opening manager at Sanaa. The restaurant features indian inspired dishes and is found in Kidani Villiages, the new Disney Vacation Club addition to the Animal Kingdom Resort. From the restaurant lobby and most of the restaurant you have a view of the Savannah... ours was dampened a little since it was dark out, but it was still nice to know there were wild animals roaming about.

We started our meal off with delicious mango margaritas, and a traditional bread service with naan bread, and another bread that was kind of like a pita (you get to choose 3... we just chose 2 naan). We also chose our 3 sauces: mango chutney, roasted red pepper hummus, and a garlic-lime pickle. They were all delicious, but I definitely agree with our server, it's impossible to explain the taste of the pickle, because it takes your brain about 30 seconds just to understand what you're eating! Such a complex flavour. We then split an appetizer trio: samosas, duck rillette, and a rice pilaf. It was incredible! Finally we had our entrees. Mine was a delicious beef short ribs, rice, and red wine curry chicken. I also went for the trio for dessert, getting to try mango pudding, chocolate cake, and another cake... mmm. I definitely reccommend Sanaa for anyone visiting the WDW resort who loves exotic food. I'd definitely visit again!

For all our amazing and delicous pictures, click here.

May 7th I had a lucky extra day off! Someone needed a trade, so of course I said yes! I used the day to clean, do laundry, and get ready for Rob's visit!

May 8th Rob arrived for his final visit! After picking him up from the airport we went to Sanaa for lunch. I loved it so much the first time I had to show Rob! We had the bread trio, and then I tried the naan burger with mango chutney. So delicious! After leaving Sanaa we were so full we could burst, so we decided to go check in to our room at the All Star Movies resort. It wasn't ready, but they gave us the keys, and said they would call us with the room number when it was ready. So we went back to the Commons to relax until we could finally move in! We were in the Dalmations section of the resort, which was really neat because everything was decorated with the 101 Dalmations theme in mind.

We didn't have much time to settle in, because we had to head to the Hoop Dee Doo Revue for dinner! We were seeing the late show so we were able to watch Wishes from the beach and still make it to the show in plenty of time. The perfect start to a vacation! The Revue was amazing, it's an all you can eat, all you can drink menu including Sangria, beer, and wine! Plus, it's a dinner show! All the food is delicious, homestyle country meals like fried chicken, beans, and ribs, and the show is hilarious! After the show they have buses there to all the resorts! It's perfect! A wonderful night out!

May 9th was Rob's first visit to Seaworld! We started the day out right with a trip to see the Stigrays, but then we saw it was dolphin feeding time! Of course we got in line to feed the dolphins, since Rob had never pet or fed one before. I took lots of nice pictures while Rob got to play (but I still fed them too), it was a wonderful experience! Next we headed to the rollercoasters! We saw that the new Manta ride was working and we couldn't resist! It's a very unique coaster. You sit down and then they rotate you forward so it's like you're flying. We waited for the front... I haven't screamed like that in a long time! After that we had to go on Kraken, followed by a walk to the beer building... but the beer building doesn't give free beer anymore! It's tragic!

There was still a fair amount of time before the Shamu show, so we decided to pass time the old fashioned way... by playing! I love the ropes and I always used to climb on them as a kid, so why not now?! Rob definitely thought I was crazy, but we had a lot of fun. I also realized how tiring it is to be a kid. Those things aren't easy to climb! We kept falling and it took a lot of strength... still... we mastered it! Finally we saw the Shamu show. It was amazing as always, I really love what they've done with the screens. For people who haven't seen it they have four large screens which they can move side to side or rotate to make various shapes or for different effects. It's really neat. The whales also rock. After the show we were pretty tired so we decided to call it a day. We'd only seen a couple shows, but Rob was going to have a whole other day at the park and I didn't want him to run out of things to do!

After a quick nap we started our hunt for Hidden Mickey's! We found all of the Hidden Mickey's in all of the All Star Resorts using our Official Guide to Hidden Mickey's!. It was quite a challenge! Sometimes even the hints don't really describe where or what you're looking for. Sometimes you think the Mickey is so obvious they couldn't possibly classify it as hidden, and sometimes it's just impossible to see! After all of that, we were ready for a good night's sleep!

May 10th we were up early to check into the Boardwalk Villas! Our room was ready (even at 8am) and so we moved in right away! Then I dropped Rob off at Sea World and went in to work for 10 AM. I picked Rob up after work (he had fun!) and then we went to Boma (another first). It is such a good buffet featuring lots of American and African food, and some of the best deserts! We also went Hidden Mickey hunting around the Animal Kingdom Lodge and found them all, though we needed help for some, they were difficult! When we got home we had just enough time to walk over to Hollywood Studios (because you can do that from the Boardwalk) and see Fantasmic. The entrance people thought I was crazy maingating someone when it was almost park closing, but it was worth it! When else was Rob going to get to see his favourite show now that they only have it one or two nights a week?!

May 11th was our Magic Kingdom day! The day started off excellently when we got to meet the Dapper Dans, and Rob even got his picture with them! Then we started our long trek of going on rides to look for Hidden Mickey's. They are not easy to find! Some are pretty hidden, and can only be seen from certain views or positions in the car. You miss them sometimes, too... so you end up going on rides more than once, just looking for the Mickey and ignoring most of the interesting parts of the ride. My only other complaint about the Hidden Mickey hunt is that the book isn't organized how I'd like it. It isn't planned out into sections or worlds, but rather it plans your day for you, and it doesn't do it how I would normally go around the park. As a seasoned Disney veteran I have my own routine and I hate having to backtrack because I didn't know the other Hidden Mickey's in that land were at the end of the section!

And again, I have to mention how some Hidden Mickey's are ridiculous... like a mailbox that literally has Mickey's face on it in Toontown... that's not hidden!

And what's with this "Hidden Pluto"?

There are some good things about Hidden Mickey hunting! Many Cast Members saw us with the book and offered to help. The best was the custodial Cast Member in Tomorrowland. He tried to help us find the oldest and most hidden Hidden Mickey, and when we couldn't find it he even got his manager involved and they offered us a any-use Fast Pass if we found it... which we did! It was a Magical Moment I'll never forget!

I promise we did things other than hunt for Hidden Mickey's! Since it was the Shuttle Launch day, we found the best spot to view the launch and watched with several other Cast Member's and Guests. It wasn't much to see, just like a line of clouds (like any other jet or airplane) but it seemed farther away. It was still really nice to see! We also watched the 3-o'clock parade!

Dinner at Cinderella's Royal Table was also on our agenda! I'd booked this 6 months in advance to celebrate this amazing vacation (not knowing it would prevent us from seeing the shuttle launch up close). We started off with an amazing picture with Cinderella and were taken upstairs for our even more delicious meal! It was perfect and incredible. The Fairy Godmother even sang a couple lines of her song directly to us!

After dinner we continued to look for Hidden Mickey's (somewhat reknewed after dinner), and then stayed around for SpectroMagic and Wishes! After it all we were very tired, and went home to get some sleep!

May 12th we headed to Busch Gardens! I underestimated the drive so we were a little later than I'd planned, but it didn't matter because the lines weren't huge. The only downer for the day was that it kept raining, and by raining I mean pouring. We ended up hiding in the que for Shiekra for over an hour! So we left mid-afternoon, went to a Cracker Barrel, and headed home for the night.

May 13th was another busy day because we explored Universal Studios! We even met Homer Simpson! We managed to see all of both parks, and went on our favourite rides a couple of times!

Then, in the evening we decided we were up for a challenge. Rather than going out for dinner, we thought we'd go out for a treat. I'd heard about this legendary "Kitchen Sink" sold at the Beaches and Cream ice cream shop at the Beach Club, so we went to check it out. Eight scoops of ice cream, a can of whipcream, and all the toppings. Sounds like a challenge, but not too bad. That's 4 scoops of ice cream and a bit of whip cream each. Little did we know "all the toppings" included peanut butter, oreos, brownie, reeces peanut butter cups, shortbread, pineapple, m&m's, and more! It was quite a challenge to tackle. Even worse, once they've made it they sound the alarm and announce that "TWO" people are going to eat it... eek! If you can eat it by yourself in an hour, it's free. Rob and I made some nice dents, but sooner (rather than later) we felt sick. Very sick. We pushed through, but it was no use. The Kitchen Sink definitely beat us!

May 14th started with Hidden Mickey Hunting around the Boardwalk. We went through the three resorts (the Boardwalk, Beach Club, and Yacht Club) and wound up at the Big River Grille & Brewing Works for lunch. This is the only microbrewery on Disney property, and I knew Rob would love it! Lunch was delicious, and Rob got a testing flight to sample all of the delicious beers. I think he chose the middle one, though I can't remember which beer it was.

In the evening we dressed up and headed over to the Contemporary Resort for the famed California Grill Restaurant. The restaurant is at the very top of the resort, and is one of the most beautiful places to watch a sunset on Disney property. Plus, it has a fantastic view of the fireworks over Cinderella Castle (if you're lucky enough to be sitting at a table near the window). We were just that lucky! I was a little worried that our reservation was too early for fireworks, but with a full three course meal the fireworks came right at dessert! The fireworks were just as good as the food, and after our meal we went out on the balcony to view the water parade (always a favourite) before heading back to the Boardwalk.

May 15th we got up early to visit Animal Kingdom, go on some of our favourite rides, look for Hidden Mickey's, and eat at our favourite restaurants. The Yak & Yeti quick service is still one of my favourite places to eat! Once we'd completed our Hidden Mickey hunt we decided to head to Epcot for more Mickey's and Extra Magic Hours (EMH). I really don't know how people do this. I'll admit, by this point we were pretty exhausted with the hunt for Mickey's. Many of the Mickey's were starting to look similar, and so the thrill just wasn't there. But still, attending EMH was grueling... the day was so long. I think that for Guests and CM's they really are Extra Tragic Hours. We went on a couple of rides and then walked home to get some sleep. While we were there we did pictures with the some of the Flower & Garden Festival attractions! They were just being set up for the festival which begins later this month.

May 16th we went to Hollywood Studios for our final Mickey hunting adventure, and more! We had reservations at one of my favourite restaurants: the 50's Prime Time Cafe. I always love that restaurant because the food is delicious, and the servers are hilarious. I don't think there's anywhere else where servers are allowed to enforce manners. Rob was shocked when our server (who was hilarious) asked us to set the table, and kept threatening him not to put his elbows on it! The day was also exciting because we got to watch a friend of mine in the American Idol Experience! His family wasn't there so we got to sit in the VIP/Family section... I was so proud! Unfortunately, he didn't make it through to the finals... but we did get to see Fantasmic!

May 17th we had to leave the Boardwalk Villas, but it wasn't too sad because we were moving up to the Grand Floridian! This is a place I've always wanted to stay, but I don't think I'd want to pay the un-discounted prices! It was definitely worthwhile for one day, though! When we checked in we were given a room with a balcony overlooking one of the main pools. We relaxed on the balcony with some beer and wine before heading to the pool ourselves. We had a "rough" day of relaxing by the pool and in a hammock overlooking the lagoon. It was paradise.

For dinner we headed to 1900 Parkfare, Cinderella character dining! We got to meet Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine, Drizella, and Anastasia. It was so much fun! After dinner we were hoping to catch Wishes, but it was cancelled due to poor weather.

May 18th I had to leave this fantasy world, drive Rob back to the airport, and work a PM. I felt so out of it at work, and just wished I was back lounging by the pool with Rob!

If you'd like to see all of our pictures click on the numbers below!

1 | 2 | 3

If you'd like to find all the Hidden Mickey's we found, check out these photo albums!

1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Amazing April!

2009-05-01T23:53:00.032-04:00

The end of March and beginning of April all I did was work and study. I worked my butt off, then studied my butt off! I would work an AM, get home, eat, and then do practice question or a practice GMAT. If I worked a PM it was the opposite.

Then, April 8th it was time to put my studying to the test! I got ready, went to the testing centre, took a real deep breath (like my Dad always tells me to) and started. It's an electronic test, so as soon as I finished I was able to see my score... a 720! Much better than what I was hoping for, or needed! I was so proud! I called everyone, got really excited, dressed up and went to Chef Mickey's! It was a lot of fun! Thanks to Dad for the Good Luck on the GMAT Cake... I think it really helped!

April 12th - Happy Easter! Well, it wasn't the best Easter for me since I was out late with friends the night before and so I was VERY tired. I worked a PM. I expected it to be very busy, but it wasn't. It was actually abnormally slow. I was in Northwest and had 2 large parties all night, so it wasn't too bad overall.

April 17th I was invited by the Breakfast Club to join them for an Ohana Breakfast! It was so much fun! We got to meet Lilo, Stitch, and Hawaiian Micky! I also got to meet a lot of the newbies I haven't gotten the chance to talk to, it was SO nice!

April 18th I was an AM Server, and then I went for dinner at Raglan Road with my Cast Choir friends. I love them so much! They are the nicest group of people, and they really remind you what being a CM is all about! Unfortunately, since Raglan Road is a little noisy we didn't get to talk as much as we like, but we scheduled another dinner for July! They usually schedule one for later, but they bumped it up so it would be before my program ended! So nice!

The next week, my job was to work on my MBA applications... oh, and work at Le Cellier!

April 24th I was up really early. No, not 8am early, not even 7am early. I signed up for the Haunted Mansion Behind the Scenes tour, so I had to be at the Programs Office at 6:15am. I didn't even know that time of morning existed. The tour was amazing. It was given by two amazing mansion CM's, and was so detailed. You get to see how everything works, and I even got to pet the sad looking dog in the final scene. Once I got home there was no time for napping! It was Krista and Alex arrival time, so I headed straight for the airport. From there it was a little struggle to find our place, but it was worth it. We knew we had a two bedroom condo, but we didn't know it was going to be like having two condo's! There were two doors to get into each. The first door led to a small hallway with private (lockable) doors into each suite. Krista and I took the larger one with the full kitchen, but Alex still had is own small living room, kitchenette, bedroom, and washroom. Impressive! We headed for dinner at Olive Garden because we were all starving, then relaxed and planned out our week!

April 25th I had the day off, so we took the chance to go to Kennedy Space Centre! It was nice to see it all again, and get to ride the Launch Experience for the first time. It was really neat! It's not as thrilling as Mission Space but it gives you a realistic idea of what it's like to be in a rocket as it's launched! Plus, while we were out there we got to see the shuttle on the launch pad... a perfect excuse for a group picture. When we got home, we were dead tired so we took a little nap before heading to Howl at the Moon. Krista and Alex both love karaoke bars, so I thought they'd appreciate this dueling piano / rock band bar. It's quite entertaining!

April 26th was Krista and Alex's first introduction to the Disney Parks! We headed to Hollywood Studios in the morning and I took them on Tower of Terror, showed them the best rides and shows, and taught them how to use the Fast Pass system. Then I had to run off and work a PM. It was going to work out perfectly because they'd watch the late Fantasmic and then I'd be there to pick them up after work but wouldn't you know I was checker. The last person sat, and I was sat late. This meant I wasn't even done cleaning/checking everyone when I was supposed to pick them up. I felt bad when I saw them sitting outside in the parking lot in the drizzle... sorry guys... blame Disney!

April 27th it was time to show Alex and Krista real Disney Magic... at the Magic Kingdom! Unfortunately, all I had time to do was drop them off, let them in, and take a couple of pictures with them because I had to work an AM that day! Still, after work Rebecca (who know's Alex) and I met up with them for dinner and fun! Rebecca and Alex went off to enjoy some of their favourite rides and Krista and I went shopping! So much fun! Then we stayed for SpectroMagic and Wishes of course! What is a trip to Disney without Wishes?!

April 28th I worked a 10:15 and so Alex and Krista visited Epcot! After work, Rebecca and I met them for dinner at the best restaurant in the WDW Parks... Le Cellier of course! It was really nice to show them where I worked, and how good it was! Then we took some pictures, saw the Canada movie, and watched Illuminations before heading home!

April 29th I had the day off so we decided to go explore Universal. We managed to do both parks, and all the rides we wanted to in one day! Lots of fun, lots of coasters! I saw the new coaster that they're building. It looks like it won't be open until after I leave Orlando, but it looks like a lot of fun, and I can't wait to ride it!

April 30th Krista and Alex were exhausted so they relaxed around our resort while I worked my AM. Then we went for dinner at Bongo's, Downtown Disney, and Cirque du Soleil! It was absolutely amazing and a perfect last night!

May 1st it was time for Alex and Krista to head home. We checked out of our condo, and headed to IHOP for some wonderfully delicious breakfast. Then in was the airport for goodbyes and Epcot, where I worked another PM!

Overall it was a wonderful vacation, and it was so nice to see my friends from Canada and McMaster. Disney is kind of its own little bubble and so it's always good to get out of it every once and awhile.

For all of our pictures from the vacation, click here!

The Rest of March!

2009-04-12T16:37:00.000-04:00

March 15th was the Bowl-A-Thon. Disney organized a bowl-a-thon to benefit Young Acheivers in Orlando, and F&B Canada had 2 teams! We were "Canada Rocks" and dressed up as rock stars. It was so much fun. I didn't bowl well, but it didn't matter because we danced, laughed, and had a blast... and it all benefitted a good cause! Check out the photos!

The rest of the week was just rough. I was tired, sick of people at work, and I really missed Rob and was feeling homesick. So I convinced Rob, switched some of my shifts at work, and booked a trip to the Florida Keyes!

March 20th I had the day off to relax and pack and then it was Goofy's Mystery Tour! Goofy's Mystery Tour is an after-hours event held for Cast Members every year! You have to get a group of 4 (minimum of 2 CM's) and then register early because the event fills up fast. The event is held at Hollywood Studios. My team consisted of myself, Ty, Rebecca, and Rebecca's roommate Mariesela. Everyone meets and gathers in the Beauty and the Beast theatre for the first task - 50 multiple choice Disney questions. This is not your standard Disney trivia... it's extreme, only for the best-of-the-best Disney Geeks. They ask questions like "What was Minnie's iguanna's name?". I didn't even know Minnie had pet iguanna. After the trivia, it's on to part 2... the real challenge. You are bungey-corded in to your other teammmates so you have to move as a group. You're given your first "clue" or "puzzle" and you have to solve it to get a letter and another clue. When you've solved all the clues you'll have all the letters so you can rearrange them to find the answer to the riddle... sound easy? It's not.

Our first puzzle wasn't so bad. Match the characters name with the movie they were in. The leftover name is someone who is celebrating their un-birthday! Go wish them a happy un-birthday by name! The only trick was, the movie names were changed. Instead of The Lion King it was The Feline Ruler, etc. Being Disney nerds we easily dominated it and moved on. But they only got more difficult. One involved random trivia AND math skills, another roadsigns, another involving finding specific words in a paragraph to find the clue, a word search, logic puzzle, and more! We did fairly well, tied for the best team from Le Cellier... which still wasn't very high in the standing ;)

March 21st Rob arrived so I picked him up from the airport and we drove down to Key Largo (yes, I chose it because of the song). You take the Florida Turnpike most of the way so it's easy driving on a toll road. It's still a pretty long drive (about 7 hours). When we got there we checked into our hotel where they told us that they no longer had any ocean view 1 bedrooms... so they would have to give us a complimentary upgrade to a 2 bedroom unit! It was a very nice place! Flat screen tv's, full kitchen, two bathrooms, two bedrooms. The first night we made snacks and then relaxed. We were still full from a Cracker Barrel stop on our way down!

March 22nd we got up early for our snorkel adventure! The hotel package included a snorkel cruise so we thought it would be fun! Unfortunately, this wasn't exactly a snorkel cruise... it was more of a scuba tour that they let snorkelers go on. We drove out to the middle of the ocean (or so it seemed) where they parked the boat and expected us to go snorkel in the huge waves! Being that I'm scared of snorkeling and sharks and fish to begin with I was petrified. I jumped in, panicked and promptly got onto the boat. The waves combined with feeling claustraphobic in the snorkel mask was not a good combination. So I toughed it out on the boat... and I do mean toughed it out. With all of the waves rocking the small boat back and forth I felt sick. In fact, I was sick, and the people running the tour said nothing. They really took care of their snorklers. After that adventure we went back to our resort and took advantage of our free kayak rental. Kayaking in the wind wasn't much easier but in our 2 person kayak we managed to make it to one side of a small bay, and let the wind blow us back. We did this a couple times before getting bored and heading back for a relaxing night with dinner and margaritas!

March 23rd, our second day in the keyes was much nicer! We drove down towards Key West, but got sidetracked and stopped at Marathon Beach. It was a gorgeous beach with white sand where we relaxed, swam, and I studied a little. We definitely underestimated how south we were and got a little too much sun! Well, I got a little too much sun, Rob got WAY too much sun! After getting burnt we headed for dinner at the Outback... mmm... bloomin' onion.

March 24th we got up early, checked out, and drove back to Orlando so that Rob could make his flight on time. When I got back to the Commons, I just relaxed after a wonderful vacation, ready to go into work the next day!

Click here for all of the photos from this vacation!

After Disneyland

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After Disneyland most of what I did was work. Since I had four days off in a row, I had to work for over a week straight until my next day off. Inbetween shifts at work my goal was to get as much studying done as possible for the GMAT (test date is April 8th!). Still, I did have some fun, and some interesting days!

Friday February 27th I worked an AM and Heather had the day off, so after work we headed to Walmart to grab groceries. Neither of us had bought groceries in a really long time. Then we got ready for our fancy dinner! Before Disneyland we'd planned to go out to the Grand Floridian Cafe for a girls night, since we hadn't done anything fun together in awhile. We arrived at the Grand Floridian just as the fireworks (Wishes) started, but unfortunately the buildings blocked our view. We headed to the restaurant to check in, and people-watched until our table was ready. People watching is fun at the Grand Floridian because there's SO many different people there. You see people dressed up going to and from Victoria and Albert's (a super fancy restaurant), casual families just enjoying their vacations, and everything inbetween.

The food at the Grand Floridian Cafe was amazing. For appetizers I had a strawberry salad (similar to the raspberry one at Steakhouse 55, but strawberry with cashews). It was so good. Heather had a squash soup, which she enjoyed! Then for our entrees we both had the ribeye steak with green beans and mashed potatoes... and the portions were large! Both of us ended up taking almost half of our meal home. But we saved a little room for dessert, which was nice because the desserts they offer are small. I had a mini chocolate mousse and Heather had a Tirimisu. They were literally the perfect size, any more and I would not have had room! Overall, it was delicious food, and not too expensive! I would definitely go back again!

For the next week, my main goal was to study as much as possible. The only problem is that I don't really have a place to study. I can use the kitchen table in my apartment, but if anyone else is home and in the living room it's really distracting. Most of the time I study lying on the floor in my bedroom. Not the best layout, but it works. The preparations are going well. I've started with the quantitative section of the GMAT and so far so good. All of the concepts are things I've learned before, so I'm mainly refreshing my knowledge, learning tricks to complete questions faster, and familiarizing myself with the question types. Next I'm going to have to starton the verbal section, which has sentence correction and other questions. It might be the harder section for me, but it shouldn't be too bad!

The next big event was March 4th when I met Andrea at Hollywood Studios! It's so nice to see people from home! Unfortunately the next day I had to work a MID while they were off playing at Universal Studios. I really would have liked to use my pass again. Fortunately I had the next day off! So I headed to meet up with them at Cocoa Beach! It was so much fun. The only sad thing was that this was my first time at a Florida Beach. It took me 8 months to make it to a beach... and I have a car!

March 7th was the Royal Family 5k! For some reason I wasn't as excited to run as I was for the Circle of Life 5k back in January. Still, I got up, donned my skirt (with shorts underneath), pink tank top, and Princess tiara and headed to the races! During the race I wasn't feeling well so I ended up walking more than running but it was still fun. All through the course they had princesses and different characters dressed up like royalty! I would love to do it again, and if you ever do it... bring a camera! After the race I felt really sick, so I went home and prepared for my PM shift.

Here are some pictures of the race!

Here you can see that it's true... even when I'm running if I know there's a camera I smile! Sometimes I'm just too focused on running... and running isn't pleasant!

But I finished and got my medal!

March 11th was the next interesting day... not for a good reason. It was just a bad day. The day started wrong when I locked myself out on my way to work. Usually I grab my keys but something was just off and I forgot. The problem with that is my Company ID is on the same lanyard as my keys so without it I couldn't get into Cast Services (or the park), and couldn't clock in at work. So immediately I knocked on the door, I thought at least one of my roommates was home but no one answered so I went to security. Normally I'd just go to Housing to get a key but since this was a Wednesday they weren't open yet. Security didn't have a key, and couldn't let me in. They tried calling my apartment - no one answered. Finally, we saw Jess (the VERY nice person who's been trying to get Heather and I our own apartment) and she was able to give me a key. So I ran to unlock the door and noticed that the bolt was locked. WHAT!? Clearly, since I didn't have a key I didn't lock it, and I didn't see anyone go into the apartment while I was running around. I wasn't impressed. The heat was also on and one of my roomies was clearly in the shower. Ugh.

Luckily I still made it to work on time... but that's where the luck stopped. People seemed to get angry at me for stupid little things, and I just wasn't in the mood. I survived my shift and arrived home to an overheated apartment. I turned the heat off but was still sweating so much I couldn't get to sleep. This heating battle is ridiculous... I don't know how we're going to survive the summer!

March 12th was an AWESOME day. I got to meet up with Emma! I met her at the townhouse she was staying at with cookies (and sunscreen) and we headed to Animal Kingdom together, since that was the park she hadn't seen yet. We did a lot of the rides, the shows, and had SO much fun. While we were there I got a phone call from Heather, WE'RE MOVING INTO A 1 BEDROOM TOMORROW!!!! I don't think anything could have made me more excited! No more heat battles, hello airconditioning, and quiet, and a place to study! When Emma and I were done with the AK I came home, packed, and started packing my car!

March 13th I woke up really early, around 7:30am for no reason, I was just so excited I could sleep. It didn't matter, though, because we couldn't get the key until 9am. We went exactly at 9am to get our keys and found out we were moving into 413, right around the corner from our current apartment! Within 2 hours we were all moved in! Our new apartment is amazing, it's so huge, PLUS we'll keep it clean! We each have our own closet, there's a large living room, tons of cupboard space and the washer and dryer are in their own rooms. After we unpacked we did a Walmart trip and then I cooked shake and bake chicken, fried rice, and veggies for dinner! It was so good! It's nice to have a clean kitchen you feel good cooking in. I'm definitely looking forward to cooking/baking more in our new apartment. It's also nice, because Heather and I can each be in our own room and have a little privacy!

This new apartment is a whole world of awesome!

Disneyland!

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Photos
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The Start of February!

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WARNING!
Pretty much all I've done so far this month is work, and so this blog will be very boring unless you're interested in reading the rants of a server ;)

Sunday February 1st was my first PM shift by myself! I was working in Northwest and it went very well! I definitely have some areas to improve, and could be a faster server, but hey... I'm still learning!

Monday February 2nd I worked an AM, this time in PEI. I had my first large party (a table of 8) and everything was going well until one of the servers became too sick and they decided he needed to be sent home. This is when the trouble started. I was given an extra table (although another server offered to take it) and another party of 8. It's incredible how much the party will determine how easy it is to serve them. This was a VERY needy 8 top. They wanted floats and constant refills and wine (not that I can complain about all of this... because that helps my beverage check average) but it takes a lot of time to get. I didn't even have time to bus my other table! While I was opening the wine (they were trying 2 different kinds of wine) with my back facing my extra table a party was sat there. By the time I turned around, the manager was already talking to them. Apparently, they'd been waiting awhile and were not impressed. The series of events took a really downward turn and things just kept getting worse. It was VERY stressful. The 8 just kept getting needier and the other table kept getting angrier. NOT a good combination. By the end of my shift I was DEFINITELY ready to go home and relax. I felt SO bad that this table didn't get the experience that you usually get at our restaurant. Fortunately, I was able to talk to my manager, we figured out what went wrong (we both made some mistakes) and steps to make sure it doesn't happen again. I left feeling better, but still decided to have a wine and movie night with Rebecca. We cooked dinner (pasta and pesto sauce) and relaxed while watching TV. It was awesome!

Tuesday February 3rd I was a 10:15. That means you work an AM but you have to come in an hour earlier to set everything up. My job was "lemons" so I had to cut the lemons and set up a couple of other things. I worked my AM in Nova Scotia, and my first table was sat at the table that didn't go so well the day before, so I was determined to ensure they had an enjoyable experience... and they did! Serving is just so stressful, because you never know what is going to happen, who your tables will be, whether you'll be double sat, etc. One day can be amazing and the next can be aweful! I'm sure it gets better as you gain experience and learn how to deal with all the different situations, but for now I go into work scared that I'm going to mess up, or have some very grumpy guests! Lucky for me, everyone was SO happy that day!

Wednesday February 4th was another AM in Nova Scotia. I really don't mind having 3 4-tops... it flows very nicely! At the end of lunch, my last table was amazing! They were a couple, probably in their late 20's and we had SUCH a good time talking. They gave me tips about things to do and see when I go to Disneyland! They reccommended this Japanese Steakhouse, Yamabuki, in one of the Disney hotels, so Rob and I are going to check it out! After work I reaxed and then it was throw-in time! Heather and I ordered pizza and some of our friends came over for Sing Star, pizza, and drinks! It was SO much fun. We're going to have to plan some more mini-parties. The throw-in was fun (as always), and afterwards I just went to bed, excited for a day off!

Thursday February 5th was my day off! I know I used to have weekends off, but in the schedule bid in January I requested Thursday/Friday for a couple of reasons...

Heather has those days off

Parks are busier on weekends

Payday is Thursday, so you'll always have money to do things ;)

If I ever wanted to do errands, banks and other businesses are often closed on weekends, which sucks.
I didn't really do anything on my day off. Really, I just sat around relaxing and catching up on all the TV shows I didn't watch while Dad was here. It was the break I needed. I did do some research on bank accounts, and transferring money to Canada. Since I'm in service now I'm making more on a daily basis than I did in an entire week on podium, so I needed to find a way to save my money, and transfer it to Canadian funds when the exchange rate suits. Turns out the only bank that does that is RBC with their RBC Access account. If you're from Canada and doing the program I highly reccommend going to rbcbankusa.com and reading about it. It allows you to transfer money from an American account to a Canadian account online anytime you'd like.

Friday February 6th was another day off, only this time I decided to do something. I went to Partners, deposited the cash I had, and went to RBC to set up an account. They were very nice, and able to set up the US account but they just need a reference letter from Partners in order to set up a Canadian account. It's pretty sweet and I'm definitely looking forward to setting up a savings account and sending my savings to Canada!

February 7th, 8th, and 9th I worked PM shifts. Other than work I didn't really do much. I find that I need to relax so that I have the energy to work a shift, so I end up catching up on TV shows that I've missed watching. Overall, it was quite fun!

Tuesday February 10th was my first MID! A MID is when you work both the lunch and the dinner shift, so you end up working from 11:15am to 11pm. It's a VERY long day, but not too bad! For my AM I was in Quebec which would have scared be before, but they've modified it! The managers have moved our side station to where one of the tables in Quebec was, so now it's only an 8 and a 6... MUCH more manageable than two 6's and a 4! My AM went very well and I was done early so I had 30 minutes before "dinner" started to enjoy the best part of working a MID... the food. When you work both shifts you're allowed to order lunch from the restaurant. Yes, you still have to pay for it, but it's delicious and beats bringing a sandwhich! I decided to try our grilled steak burger. It was FANTASTIC! It's served on an english muffin with a house onion-ketchup. I know that sounds weird but trust me, it's amazing! For my PM shift I worked Northwest. It's really becoming my go-to section ;).

Wednesday February 11th I worked a PM in Quebec. It is a nice section, but it was starting to get a little boring. You can either be in a big rush because both tables need things at the exact same time, or you can be bored out of your mind when they are both eating/waiting for food. I did have a very nice table from Kitchener at the end of the night, though! It's always nice to have guests from Canada, especially Ontario! After work I went to one of the saddest throw-outs yet. It was a throw out for 5 people: Brad, Tara, Janique, Jessie, and Adam. All of them are AMAZING and definitely make you smile when you're running around the kitchen so it won't be the same without them! Brad's throw-out was especially sad, because it was unexpected. He'd just found out he was termed for having a guest in The Commons after 1am. What's worse is that his contract was going to end in only a couple weeks, and now he has to go home early, without being in good standing with the company, and without Disney paying for his flight home.

Thursday February 12th was another day off where (as usual) I did pretty much nothing.

Friday February 3th was supposed to be a GMAT study day, but just as I was getting ready to head to the library I got a call from my manager asking if I could come in and work an AM. I said yes, and rushed to work. I was supposed to be in Quebec (an easy AM), but then was asked to switch to Saskatchewan... a MUCH more difficult section (because you have an extra table of 4). I took on the challenge, and it wasn't that bad! I was always on the run but it made the time fly by!

Saturday February 14th was Valentine's day to some, but to me it was my longest shift to date! A manager needed someone to pick up a 10:15, and I was already working a PM that day, so I ended up working from 10:15am to 11pm. In the morning I was supposed to be in Northwest (YAY!) but then one of the servers didn't show up (she's a part time employee, who hasn't been seen in awhile) so they decided to close my section and move me to hers, Ontario. This was my first try at a 4 table section: two 2's and two 4's. It was going pretty well, I had an empty 4, a 6 waiting for entree's and a 2 just leaving so I decided to have a nice little chat with the 2. Apparently, this was the wrong decision. While chatting (and standing right beside my other table) the lady there got impatient and asked another server to grab the manager. She explained that I was very sweet but had been standing there talking to that table while they were waiting for their food. In heindsight I'm a little upset I didn't explain that we have food runners, but being me my first goal was just to get them their food (it was their son's 10th birthday afterall). So I went back to the kitchen where it was sitting, and the expo guy passed me the ticket (meaning it was JUST ready). So I brought it out. The lady took two bites of the prime rib sandwhich said it was "warm, not hot" and that she wouldn't eat it. I offered her a new sandwhich, everything... nothing would satisfy. So I got rid of the other sandwhich told my manager what happened, and the Chef decided to go out and talk to the lady. She sat there and screamed at the Chef and I for quite some time. Her child's steak (which is probably what they were waiting for) wasn't done properly and she was upset that "anyone would feed a child food so undercooked!". Plus she let me know that she was "understanding of the learning curve" but that I needed to learn not to let anyone sit there while their food was waiting. I desperately wished to tell her about food runners, and that her food was fine, but the Chef was there and it just didn't seem the time. I was pretty fed up with her and it wouldn't have come out right. So instead I just went back and focused on what I could do for my other tables. My managers talked to me, and let me know that it wasn't my fault... just a long ticket time to prepare the food. I guess I could have cut that conversation short to check on my table, but they had everything they needed and if she was that upset I was standing beside her! I mean, the tables are only about 3 feet apart and I was standing between them! She could have just tapped my shoulder or called my name but she seemed like the type of person who just wanted free stuff, which annoys me. Still, it wasn't a bad day in Ontario considering. What made it even more frustarating, though, was that "The Chief" from Grey's Anatomy dined at our restaurant and requested one of the tables in Northwest because it was so private! Alysha ended up picking it up, but while I was dealing with the angry table I couldn't help but think that I would have been meeting one of the stars of Grey's if that other server had just shown up to work! For my PM I was in Northwest, but by then it was a little too late.

Sunday February 15th I picked up an AM for Alyssa so that she could go to Canada for the weekend. I was in Northwest for both my AM and my PM. Overall, it was a good day with good tables, but by the end I was just wishing I could work in ANY other section besides Northwest. It was getting a little extreme. I wanted a challenge!

Monday February 16th I got my challenge! I was working a PM and was in Manitoba! At first I was being seated fairly quickly and felt like I was too rushed. I was getting everyone their meals in a timely fashion, but I didn't have the time to socialize or joke with any of my tables. It was okay service, but it wasn't the "Jenn" service I was able to give the other nights. I guess I won't complain if I get Northwest anymore!

Tuesday February 17th I was scheduled to work a 10:15, but then was asked to stay for dinner and work a MID. Other than that, I don't really remember much about the 17th. All the hours I'm spending in the restaurant are starting to blend together and I can't even remember what section I was in!

Wednesday February 18th I was a 10:15, but was not asked to extend, YAY! It was SO nice to only work the AM shift. You're done by 5pm and there's still daylight! DAYLIGHT! Plus, I took the opportunity to go home, take a nap, and start to pack for Disneyland!

Thursday February 19th was my last day of work before Disneyland! I was SO tired and exhausted from working SO many hours, but I was excited about my vacation, so I kept working hard. I spent the morning in the Yukon, which really is a nice section. It has three 4's and a 2. My morning was very smooth! For my PM I switched with another server so I was in BC (one 6, one 5, one 4). Again, it went really well! I had such nice tables and before I knew it the night was over! Then all I had to do was finish packing and get to sleep so I could get on my plane to Las Angeles!

January with Dad!

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January 6th-8th was pretty uneventful. I relaxed, unpacked, and started to settle back into my apartment and life at Commons. I had a lot more stuff (or so it seemed) that I needed to fit in the room, as did Heather, so that made things a little more interesting. I still don't think our room is as neat and organized as it was before Christmas, but it's getting there. On the 8th I literally came home from work, stopped by the Wide World of Sports and then pretty much went to bed because the 9th was one early morning!

Friday January 9th was the day I didn't think would ever come. If you remember, back in the summer I signed up for the "Circle of Life Family 5k". Well, it was finally the day of the race! I've never really mentioned running in my blog, and that's because I haven't run at all since coming to Florida. Yep, no running at all. Still, I got up at 5:30am so I could get ready, pick up Rebecca and get to Animal Kingdom. I was pretty excited and nervous because I'd never been to a race before. The setup was very cool. There was a stage with our two MC's, a package pickup, bag check, and lots of space to warm up (we started off in the parking lot after all!) It was cool, and dark still but Rebecca and I got ready, warmed up, and got ready for our race. Here are some pre-race photos!

I definitely underestimated myself, and so Rebecca and I started way too far back in the sea of people. The start was really cool, they had Timon and some of the cast of "The Lion King" musical to wish us luck, and fireworks to start the race! It took us two minutes to reach the starting line, almost half a mile before we could get into a running pace, and we spent over a mile passing people, trying to find people around our pace. Once I got started, running wasn't so bad. Usually I give up after a couple of minutes of running, but running in a crowd there's more motivation to keep up the pace. That, and the exileration of running a race pumped up my adrenaline and kept me going. If you want proof here are some photos Disney took during the race!

Yeah, it looks like I enjoyed running, but once you get the un-posed picture, it's not so true!

Rebecca and I finished the race in under 35 minutes! I was so proud, and once I caught my breath and had some breakfast I was smiling again!

Rebecca and I are hoping to run a couple more 5ks! There's one in March that's Princess themed! Our goal is to run the next one in under 30 minutes and I'm very excited! After the run, I relaxed and then went to work AM seating. I'm definitely glad it was an AM shift because by the end of it I was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to crash and watch tv!

Saturday January 10th I had the day off but I spent it relaxing in bed, catching up on my tv shows. I was pretty sore from running... I guess once the adrenaline wears off all you're left with is being sore.

Sunday January 11th I decided I should probably keep up this running thing so I went for a "run" which turned out to be more of a "walk-run". Shortly after, my dad arrived and so we checked into Old Key West, and went shopping! We went into Best Buy and looked at some of their laptops. My dad was still using the laptop we'd bought in 2000 so we thought maybe it was time to get a new one.

Monday January 12th was my first day of food runner training! I was pretty nervous because I wasn't sure if I would be good at carrying all the heavy plates.... especially carrying three plates at once. In the morning I went over to Old Key West and my Dad made me a very nice pancake breakfast with fruit to start me off on the right foot. Turns out it worked! Food running wasn't so bad! The first half an hour Tim (the permanent food runner, and the only trainer) showed us how the position points are determined for the various tables in the restaurant. Position points are important so that you don't end up auctioning off the food when you get to the table. The day went well, and time flew by fast. You constantly have something to do and so the 9 hour shift seems like nothing (especially compared to the 6 hour seating shifts that would drag on). It wasn't too hard, the most difficult part was just remembering the temperatures and position points you were going to. It's easy for the first little bit but then it all blends together and you can't remember whether this time it was medium, medium well, medium... or medium rare. Ha ha. After work I stopped by Old Key West to hang out with my Dad, and then headed home to Commons.

Tuesday Januray 13th my Dad and I decided that we were going to buy a new Dell laptop from Best Buy. They had the Studio laptop (in pink!) on sale on their website, so we thought we'd use my Partners Visa Check card to buy it online! So we spent the morning trying to deposit money into my account. At first we deposited in the majority as travellers cheques, which apparently are not considered cash at banks (like they are everywhere else), but are considered cheques and so a portion of the money is held for a week. Since we wanted to buy the laptop that day, we ended up having to deposit cash as well, knowing that I'd just take the money out from the travellers cheques as soon as the hold was off. It was a very frustrating and confusing processes, but at least it was done. Work went well... practice makes perfect and I was getting a lot of practice! My hands were starting to hurt and I was definitely feeling my non-existent muscles starting to get a little stronger!

Wednesday January 14th was Rebecca's birthday, so in the morning I met her, her mom, and her boyfriend's mom at the Magic Kingdom for breakfast at Crystal Palace! It was so delicious! I love character breakfasts! Afterwards, I headed to Epcot for more food runner training. Day 3 of training went fine, and Mariah and I got to remove our "Earning our Ears" flags.

Thursday January 15th was my day off! Fortunately, it was also the day my laptop was supposed to arrive. So Heather and I waited patiently for the laptop all day. In the early afternoon my Dad came to join us, brining Olive Garden takeout. It was delicious! The laptop finally came around 4:30pm, after Dad had left, so I went to Old Key West to show him and set it up! I'm definitely loving the new laptop, not only because it's pink, but I actually like Windows Vista, and having a webcam built into my computer (it makes skyping easier)!

Friday January 16th was my Dad's Birthday... and also, inconveniently, my first day as a tipped food runner. Still, we managed to do some celebrating! We got up and went into Epcot early so that he could get his present from Disney (he already had a season's pass so they gave him a $75 gift card!). Then we ate lunch at Sunshine Seasons, one of our favourite quick service restaurants. It was delicious, and so nice, because everywhere we went people wished him a Happy Birthday! Unfortunately, after lunch I had to head into work. There's something about knowing that you're actually making decent money that makes working much more satisfying. I definitely enjoyed food running SO much more that night!

Saturday January 17th I had the day off. Go figure I'd get the day before AND after my Dad's birthday off. We spent the morning relaxing and then went into Epcot in the afternoon. Despite the fact that it was my Dad's birthday celebration day, he wouldn't wear his pin. He said because it was a day after he couldn't wear it. So we wandered around and into the O'Canada film where Heather and Katie were working. Heather saw he wasn't wearing his button, so she made him a new one (which he had to wear). Even better, when Katie went up to do her spiel she made note of a very special Canadian celebrating his birthday, and he had to stand while everyone there sang him 'Happy Birthday'! It was incredible, since the waiting area was almost packed! After the film we went to our reservation at Le Cellier and had a delicious dinner, complete with a "Happy Birthday" dessert! After dinner we relaxed, wandered around Epcot, and watched Illuminations. I think it was the perfect birthday celebration day!

Sunday, January 18th I was a food runner, but I can't really think of anything else I did that day. Food running really occupies most of your day since you're at the restaurant from noon until 9:30 or 10pm.

Monday January 19th I had another day off, so my Dad and I decided to spend a day at the parks! We spent the morning in Animal Kingdom, going on the Safari and Primeaval Whirl, seeing Finding Nemo the Musical, and doing a little bit of shopping. I'd forgotten my ears at The Commons so I decided to buy a new pair! Since I still had the 50% discount I decided to invest in some sequined Minnie Ears. They are VERY cute. In the afternoon we headed to Hollywood Studios for a couple rides, the Stunt show, dining at our favourite 50's Prime Time Cafe, and of course, seeing Beauty and the Beast and Fantasmic!

Tuesday January 20th I had the day off so we spent the morning running some errands, getting groceries and a couple other things at Walmart, and went to KFC for lunch. I don't know why, but KFC is a million times better in the states. It just is. They have better options (mashed potatoes and gravy, for example) and better chicken. It's actually good in the states! Then we went back to Old Key West to relax until I had to go to my Candlelight reunion dinner at Ohana's! There were 12 of us who came together for dinner and it was a great time! We got to see a little hula show, and have the best food ever, with some of the best people ever. Honestly, the people I met through Candlelight are inspirational. The attitude they have towards daily life is wonderful and infectious. You just can't help smile around them. Dinner was even more amazing because some of the group knew one of the Chefs, and so he brought us a special scallop dish as well as fried bannanas and chocolate sauce (both not on the menu in addition to all the regular food you get at Ohana's! It was by far the best meal! We're hoping to have another one at Raglan Road in March... I can't wait!

Wednesday January 21st my Dad had to fly back to Canada for my Grandma's knee surgery so I drove him to the airport in the morning before my food running shift. Since I had Old Key West to myself, Rebecca came over after work and we chatted while munching on some snacks my Dad left us.

Thursday January 22nd was another day of food running and then Heather and Rebecca came to Old Key West for a girl's movie night. It was so much fun, and we got to watch "House Bunny". Definitely a cute movie!

Friday January 23rd was yet another day of food running... but it was exciting because it was my last food running shift before server training! By the end of the day I was so sore! I don't know if it's the fact that we have to carry heavy plates, or that I'm not used to walking so much but my hip was sore! I sound like an old person, but I was literally limping as I walked into the airport to pick my dad up!

Saturday January 24th I had the day off, so Dad and I decided to go to Sarasota and the Keys around it. Check out the pictures!

Sunday January 25th I had another day off so we headed to the Kennedy Space Center! I ended up having a ton of fun and getting a season's pass! I can't wait to go back. Check out the pictures! Part 1, and Part 2 :)

Monday January 26th was my first day of service training! As a new initiative training was supposed to start an hour before the regular shift started. So I arrived at work at 9:15am, and for the first half an hour I was the only person there. Then a manager arrived and gave me a binder to look over. Turns out there was a confustion over who was training me, and when they were supposed to show up. So I spent the morning shaddowing Emily, which was a lot of fun. My dad met me after work with some popcorn and we headed to China for some quick service food, followed by some Fantasia mini-golf. It was SO much fun, and FREE with my Disney Holiday Pass. What was even better was that I won... I rarely win at mini-golf against my dad!

Tuesday January 27th my Dad and I made a morning run to Walmart for a wine key, and then I had PM service training with a newlywed Chelsea! She had just been married at a small ceremony over the weekend and was just back from her mini-honeymoon! It was a very fun night, I was even able to take some tables myself!

Wednesday January 28th my Dad and I spent the morning at Downtown Disney because he needed to spend his birthday gift card from Disney! While we were there we headed to Wolfgang Puck's Express for lunch (they have amazing rotisserie chicken) and then I went into work for PM service training with Patrick! This time we were in a section with two 6T's and a 4. I was given two tables at a time (sometimes the two 6's) and so I found it a much more stressful day. Patrick said I did okay, but I definitely think I need more practice at this!

Thursday January 29th was my last day of service training. The last day is a morning shift. You write your written assessment (a series of questions about different things you need to know as a server), then you work in the Northwest Territories section fo the restaurant. You are supposed to be running the section yourself with your trainer just watching. Overall, I found it stressful having someone just watching over your shoulder. Near the end of your shift you have your service assessment, where your trainer and a manager are guests in your section. This I found extremely stressful but I passed! After work I met Dad at the Magic Kingdom. It was raining but that meant the park was empty so we could have some fun. We went on some rides and bought some Disney art. I also gave in and bought the giant Mickey I've been eyeing. It's huge. Mickey's head is much bigger than mine! Fortunately, the rain cleared up just in time to watch Wishes!

Friday January 30th I had the day off. Dad and I went to Walmart to grab a couple of things then spent the afternoon relaxing at Old Key West before heading to the Magic Kingdom for more shopping, Dinner at the Crystal Palace, rides, and Wishes.

Saturday January 31st Dad headed home. He left early so he could get a good start and make it most of the way back to Canada. I slept in a little more and then worked as an AM Server... my first official server shift. It went well, and I had a lot of fun, but it was sad not to go back to Old Key West after work!