Otherwise known as stepping outside of my comfort zone.

I don’t know how many people that read this know my husband (and I, kinda) started a Disneyland Resort centric website. Well, it really began with a twitter account. Jason and I were in The Golden Horseshoe one afternoon waiting in line for ice cream. While waiting, a woman near us was ranting about something, I can’t remember what her beef was anymore, but somehow that encounter turned into Overheard at Disneyland. You’d be surprised by some of the things you hear people say while visiting the parks. The twitter account has grown from 2 followers (myself and Jason) to 4733 users at the time I’m writing this.

It was really exciting when Jason and I weren’t the only people using the account to post things they’ve overheard. We’ve met a lot of great local people (and annual passholders) just because of the twitter account and website.

Anyhow, fast forward another year or so, and meeting fellow Disney fans, and the DLR Network (DisneyLand Resort) was born. Our goal is simple. To bring together true fan websites and create a hub where we can all link together and help each other grow.

Yesterday we had our first “TweetUp.” I have to be honest, I was so uncomfortable with the idea simply because I’m a bigtime introvert. And here’s my husband asking me to step out of my comfort zone and attend this thing. I didn’t want to. I really didn’t. But there was no way I wouldn’t go because it was important to Jason. He’d be seriously annoyed with me if I didn’t go. So I went. And I’m SO glad I did. I met some very cool people and participated in some really fun events.

One of the highlights for me was the Pirates of the Caribbean group ride. We somehow managed to stuff 22 or so people into 1 boat. The moment we left the dock and started passing the Blue Bayou, the entire boat erupted into an extremely loud rendition of Happy Birthday, everyone singing to Jason since his birthday was the day before.

We all did a Jungle Cruise group ride and a group picture on the Rivers of America. From there it was the Tiki Room and then over to Village Haus for dinner. At this point it was getting dark and some attendees were drifting away or going home. We were left with the guys from Days In The Park, Finding Mickey, OriginalD, our favorite castmember Jason and his lovely girlfriend Julie and Jessalyn’s newest ride buddy, Jenna   We spent quiet a while at the Village Haus chatting it up. After that we went over to Pinocchio so the little ones could have their turn on little kid rides. It was at this point I thought we’d lose the group from OriginalD. There were 4 of them. all college age, and I really thought they wouldn’t want to do kiddie rides. Turns out I was wrong and they rode Pinocchio as well as Casey Jr. Train. From there it was off to Big Thunder Mountain. Jenna convinced Jessalyn to go on the ride which she absolutely loved. By then it was late and we needed to get Jessalyn to bed. Jason and Jess really didn’t want to leave. Heck, I didn’t want to as long as the others were still there, but I had to insist we go home.

The day was absolutely Magical. Every single person I talked to, whether I met them officially, or just had a conversation with without ever getting their name was great. Everyone was really great. I stepped out of my comfort zone and I was gobsmacked by what an amazing time I had. I’m still basking in the warm fuzzies from yesterday. I absolutely can’t wait until the next TweetUp. I’m sure it’ll be even better than yesterday.

So for those of you that read this and were there, thanks. Thank you for making Jason feel special by singing to him, thank you for being awesome people and thank you for coming. I look forward to our next meeting.

I can’t wait to see where else this Disney adventure takes us!

A lot of year in review type posts have been going up all over the “blogosphere.” (Does anyone even say blogosphere anymore?)

To be honest, I can’t wait for this year to be over. We’ve had two first time ER visits, one for me, one for my son. I had my first broken bone ever, and my son squeaked by with no issues when he fell off his skateboard and hit his head on the street. Talk about a scary moment getting that call. And then there’s the “little” thing with my husband being laid off for the third time in 4 years. 2010 hasn’t been particularly kind to us. I’ve seen other people say the same.

My hope for our family in 2011 is that everyone stays healthy and OUT of the ER, and that my husband can get a good GREAT job. That’s the thing, he’d like something better than a job for the sake of having a job. However, we may be getting to that point anyway. Employment is proving to be very difficult order to fill. This is the longest he’s been out of a job yet, and it’s starting to get a little scary.

My hope for you is that 2011 is kind to you and yours. May you be blessed beyond measure.

However, I did document 20 things that make me happy.

I’ll try again sometime next year. That’s the best I can do at this point.

17

The Kindergarten classes had a Thanksgiving feast last week and they performed a few songs for everyone. It was super cute.

18

I finally got around to using my free birthday drink from Starbucks. One of the joys of getting a free drink or getting a gift card is I’m more willing to try something I wouldn’t normally get. Especially when the drink is almost $5. I got a caramel brulee latte

19

And one of the simple joys in life is being the first one to crack open the ice cream container. Right?

20

It’s the little things my friends…

*Bonus points if you know what book is currently on the screen without having to look it up. My son’s reading this one.*

15) Just about the yummiest gum on the planet.

16) Crafts made by my daughter at the Daisy (Girl Scout) meeting

12

On Saturday, Jessalyn, me, my girlfriend Christie and her 2 boys went on a letterboxing adventure. One of the best things about letterboxing is finding places close to home you didn’t know were there. Our “treasure hunt” as the kids like to call it, took us to a small railroad exhibit close to home. The kids got to climb all over a real train engine.

13

10 – My Grandfather

11- My Father (on the right)

____

And to a few veterans I personally know and are still with us:

Thank you to my father-In-law for his service in Vietnam and to my sister-in-law and her husband for their service as well.

Thank you to the many many service members past and present for your bravery and dedication to keeping us safe and free.

#8

Of course this picture was taken at our favorite place to spend a day, Disneyland.

This next picture was taken in the parking lot of the high school while I was waiting for my oldest to get to the car. This is looking across the street.

#9

Friday night we went to a local pizza joint for a friend’s son’s baseball fundraiser dinner. It was Jason’s last day of work until he finds something new. He needed this.

#6

The ladies at Jason’s formar place of employment sent this home for us

#7 Sunday we took the little one to Disneyland. She wanted her picture taken here:

#4

I’ve entered contests on blogs before but have never won. Yet I keep trying. However, our friends at Finding Mickey hosted a thank you giveaway on their blog last month and I won! You can click the blog link to see just what I won, but here’s the box I opened yesterday when it arrived.

Thanks again Rosemary and Neil! You guys are awesome!

We met them through our Disney twitter project Overheard at Disneyland. If you haven’t seen the site, check it out. It’s a lot of fun!