You guys, it's warm here! The last week has been the nicest weather, and I can't even begin to tell you how much the sunshine has lifted our spirits around here. Last Saturday we were actually productive, gasp! We did yard work, and rode our bikes around the lake, and a whole bunch of other things. It was lovely. Hopefully this will start a trend of getting our of our house more often.
I have a goal this summer to NOT complain, no matter how hot and humid it gets. If I ever get tempted to complain, I will remind myself of the Nebraska winter, and then I will give myself a mental slap to the face, and put a smile on :)
Even though we were holed up in our house most of the winter, we did get out a couple of times (like maybe once a month), and were glad when we did.
There is a chocolaterie here in town that we decided to try out. It was fun, and fancy, and comfortable all at the same time. I could hang out there.
The real draw for me was that they make fresh stroopwaffels every other Saturday, so we HAD to try that out.
They were just okay ;) But the bonbons were pretty fabulous!
Joe's parents came out for a few days, and we took them to downtown Omaha, and found this fabulous store called Hollywood Candy.
You guys, this place!!! If you come visit me in Nebraska, I will take you here. It is amazing! Not only is it a huge candy store, but it is an antique shop/museum, theater, arcade, and diner. It's like a freaking maze too, with new fun things to discover at every turn.
We let all the kids spend $5 on candy, because, you know, payday. It was SO hard to decide what to get! Joe tried some chocolate covered bacon. It was weird. It was like a hamburger on a doughnut. That just doesn't work for me.
So it turns out that Nebraska DOES have a few cool things to offer ;) Just kidding, I'm sure we'll find many more. Maybe next time we'll find something that doesn't involve candy or chocolate....maybe ;)
Cora turned 17 years old (gasp) back in February, and apparently I was on a blogging hiatus at the time, because I didn't post anything about it. This month Alex turned 11 years old (double gasp), so I'm going to do a two in one birthday thing here.
First up is Cora.
- Who's your favorite super hero? - Captain America
- What's your favorite super hero movie? - Captain America 3
- What's your favorite color? - Blue
- If you could only eat one kind of food for the rest of your life, what would it be? - Cheesecake
- What food do you hate? - Bell Peppers
- What's your favorite TV show? - The Office
- If you could only watch one movie for the rest of your life, what would it be? - Harry Potter and the
Order of the Phoenix
- What's something you are really good at? - Math
- What is something you want to learn how to do? - Surf
- What is something that makes you really happy? - Drama class
- What is something that makes you really mad? - When people talk about money
- What is something that makes you really sad? - Moving
- What is something that makes you laugh? - Dad
- What do you want to be when you grow up? - a Teacher
- Where do you want to live when you grow up? - I have no idea
Now let me tell you some more about her.
Cora likes to refer to herself as a single mother of two these days.
Don't be tricked into thinking that she's the only one who takes care of them or anything though ;)
Cora is the master of selfies. Plus, she's gorgeous.
Cora's favorite person is Joseph. She'll tell you so herself. His picture is the wallpaper on her phone (she got a phone for her 17th birthday). And most of her selfies are with him.
Cora is obsessed with all things Disney. One of her life goals was to get a selfie with Goofy. Mission accomplished.
Cora's new favorite past time is vacuuming with our new vacuum. She is obsessed with how well it picks up all the dog hair.
Cora makes me want to be a better person. She makes life fun. She's one of my best friends.
And now for Alex.
- Who's your favorite super hero? - Batman
- What's your favorite super hero movie? - Spiderman Homecoming
- What's your favorite color? - Purple
- If you could only eat one kind of food for the rest of your life, what would it be? - Frushi
- What food do you hate? - Celery
- What's your favorite TV show? - Ducktales
- If you could only watch one movie for the rest of your life, what would it be? - Fantastic Mr. Fox
- What's something you are really good at? - Drawing
- What is something you want to learn how to do? - Paint
- What is something that makes you really happy? - Legos
- What is something that makes you really mad? - (this took him the longest to answer because the
boy NEVER gets mad, I swear) Watching the same movie over and over again
- What is something that makes you really sad? - Sad Movies (we were binge watching the new Lost
in Space series on Netflix the other day - highly recommend it - and he teared up when
**SPOILER** Will Robinson told the robot to walk off the cliff)
- What is something that makes you laugh? - TV shows
- What do you want to be when you grow up? - a Doctor (that's new)
- Where do you want to live when you grow up? - Utah
And now let me tell you some more about this kid.
Alex is an incredible artist. He is completely self-taught, and spends hours practicing. Here are a couple of things he's done lately.
Cyborg
Self Portrait in his favorite hoodie
Harry Potter
Batman
Alex LOVES watching the old Bob Ross shows. So for his birthday we got him some paint supplies, and I can't wait to see what he comes up with.
Alex loves Stitch. Cora got him this Stitch hoodie for his birthday. He draws Stitch a lot.
Alex is just a pleasant person to be around. Ever since he was a baby, he's smiled WAY more than any other kids I know. His laugh is the most joyful sound. I just love my "baby" so much!
No, we're not moving. I didn't mean to mislead you with the title.
Madelyn: My teacher hates snow
Me: Well then, he lives in the wrong place
Madelyn: He's actually lived in Nebraska his whole life. Isn't that weird? Especially considering how old he is.
This conversation was interesting to me because it shows that moving is a normal thing for Madelyn, and she doesn't realize that's not the norm for most other people. And not just moving itself, but moving to different states, and even different countries. It got me to wondering about how many people live in the same state their whole lives....so I googled it, because that's what we do around here for fun ;)
A Pew Research study done a few years ago shows that 57 percent of American adults have lived in the same state their whole lives, and 37 percent of American adults have never moved from the town they were born in. That's a lot. Isn't that a lot?
We have lived in Utah, California, Texas, Nebraska, plus I did a short stint in North Carolina (and that doesn't even include the other countries we've lived in), and we're not done moving yet. Only 15 percent of American adults have lived in 4 or more states, so we are definitely not "normal".
That being said, we ARE a military family, and for most of her life, Madelyn and my other kids have been surrounded by other military families, so of course moving IS the norm in their world.
It makes me wonder what my "military brat" kids' lives will be like when they're all grown up and on their own, and if they'll continue to move around, or find somewhere to settle down and call home.
It also makes me wonder when and where Joe and I will finally settle down. It's kind of hard to imagine, and we changed our minds CONSTANTLY. I will tell you, though, that I'm shooting for the West. Joe is perfectly happy with humidity, but I prefer the desert.
You'd think that with all this moving, it would get easier, but it doesn't. It doesn't ever get easier. In fact, the older my kids have got, the harder it's been. I know, I already did a post about all the reasons why it's hard to move, but I discovered a new one this time - sometimes people who don't move a lot just don't get it.
If I or my family are expressing the difficulties of moving, please do not take that to mean that we do not fully appreciate the many opportunities and blessings that moving has given us. We know, better than anyone, how lucky we have been to live in the places we've lived, and travel to the places we've traveled. But that doesn't invalidate our feelings about how hard moving is. It's still hard. We know that life isn't always perfect, and we don't expect it to be. But when someone is talking about a challenge they are going through, don't counter that with, "Well, you should just be grateful that ______." I'm already grateful. I still have this challenge I'm going through.
Excuse me while I step down off my soap box. And honestly, this rarely happens.
Anyway, it's been 7 months since we moved, and I think we're starting to find our place. I am hopeful that as the weather starts to warm up (is it EVER going to warm up?!!!) that we will feel more motivated to get out and explore this foreign land called the Mid-West, and find things that we really love. I really do believe that you can find things you love about ANY place you live. Sometimes it just takes more work ;)
Oh, and one more thing. Mom brag moment. Cora was in a one act play for her drama class recently, and after getting a LOT of positive feedback, I think she's been re-bit by the drama bug, so I think, and hope, we'll be seeing a lot more of this in her future (a.k.a. senior year - Oh my gosh, it's going to be her SENIOR YEAR! But I'll have to save that panic attack for another post)
By the way, THIS is one of the harder things about moving when you're in high school - working your butt off at something you love for 2 years, finally starting to see things pay off and getting respect from your crazy drama teacher, and then moving, and literally having to start all over again with new students who question your abilities, and a new crazy drama teacher who has never seen what your capable of.....most drama teachers are very dramatic, by the way, and they play favorites (except for my mother-in-law, who was an English teacher in high school, but also did the drama and debate, and was the best there ever was, the end) It's nice when people recognized that, yes, you actually DO have some skill, even though they haven't been working with you for the past 2 years. Like I said, we're starting to find our place.
Warning, this is going to be long. We spent the first half of our first day here (with Marie and Antoine), and then we went back for another full day (on our own). I could spend a week in just Epcot, easy peasy. Actually, I could spend several weeks in Epcot. Basically I want to live in Epcot.
Epcot is divided into two main areas - Future World, and World Showcase. In Future World we went to Soarin' (like the one in California, only it's the whole world instead of just California - super fun), and Living with the Land, which is a boat ride through the greenhouse, learning all about sustainable farming and such.
We went to The Seas with Nemo and Friends. Kind of lame, but also had a huge aquarium.
We also went to Spaceship Earth, which is what's inside the iconic Epcot sphere, and that was really fun. Plus we went to Test Track, and braved the single passenger line, since we couldn't get fast passes for it. It was fast :)
Oh, what was really great was the Epcot was having its annual Flower and Garden Festival, so there were flowers everywhere, of course, and all kinds of fun topiaries.
The best part of Epcot for me was the World Showcase, which features 11 different countries, and BONUS - because of the Flower and Garden festival, there were extra food booths at each country! Every country was done so well. From the food, to the architecture, to the shops, to the entertainment, and every detail in between. So many details. That's why I could spend so much time there. I love the attention to details.
The first day we spent there (which was only 1/2 a day), we didn't get to spend much time in the World Showcase. We kind of hurried our way through, and then went over to Hollywood Studios, where we had our fast passes for the day. So the second day we went to Epcot, I wanted to really focus on the World Showcase and do it right. I wanted to take my time, and really see what each country had to offer. Plus, I wanted to do the Eating Around the World challenge, which is where you have at least one food from every single country ;) I told you, I'm a total Disney nerd.
Canada
I don't know much about Canada. The only time I'm been there is to go on the Canadian side of Niagra Falls. That's it. I would love to go to Toronto and Prince Edward Island. Someday. Unfortunately, this was one of the countries we saw the least of. But we did have Poutine, which is a dish from Quebec - french fries with cheese curds and gravy. Okay, it wasn't technically poutine, because it had a cheddar and bacon sauce on it instead of a brown gravy, but I don't care, because it was tasty.
United Kingdom
You know I love this place! :)
Each country also has their own Disney characters that represent that country (except for Canada....at least I didn't see any in Canada. Sorry Canada). Anyway, in England you have Winnie the Pooh.
They used to have a meet and greet with Winnie the Pooh here, in a room that was set up as Christopher Robin's bedroom. The bedroom is still set up, but it's in a room in the back of a store, and can only be seen by peaking through the door....which we did ;)
Outside the store was a beautiful little English tea garden with Tinker Bell
The inside of the store had a lot of fun and familiar wares from England :)
Best of all, we got to meet Mary Poppins! She was practically perfect in every way....for real ;) Seriously, how fun would it be if your job was to be Mary Poppins?!!!
The food we tried for the United Kingdom was Potato and Cheddar Cheese Biscuit with Smoked Salmon Tartare...
And Pear Cider-brined Shredded Corned Beef with Braised Cabbage and Branston Dressing with Pears - so freaking good!
France
France was, of course, represented by Beauty and the Beast
We watched a film about the French countryside called Impressions de France. It was very Frenchy.
We didn't explore this area with Marie and her family, but Jada would have loved it because her room is all decorated in Paris decor. There was some kind of live acrobatic performance going on outside when we were done with the film, but there were so many people gathered around, we couldn't see anything.
We had a lovely little Provencal Tomato Tart with Sauteed Onions, Fresh Thyme and Rosemary on a Flaky Pastry Crust. It's not as pretty when you've already eaten half of it.
Morocco
The shops here all smelled like incense.
We visited a beautiful building that had different displays about Morocco, like the art of henna, fashion, and Fantasia (a traditional equestrian performance)
We caught part of a live performance of this guy, who Antoine dubbed the Egyptian Lover ;)
And Marie captured some of us dancing to the enticing music. Don't be jealous of my moves.
We stopped here to get a hamburger for our youngest traveler, AJ. The exotic flavors we were trying had no appeal to a 5 year old ;)
For ourselves, we sampled 3 kinds of baklava - almond, cashew, and pistachio. I can't remember which one I liked best. They were all good, but honestly, they weren't as good as the homemade baklava my friend Val makes. Why oh why didn't I ever have her teach me how to make baklava?!
We also had the most delicious Harissa Chicken Kebab with Dried Fruit Couscous Salad. Mmmmm, spicy.
Japan
This was such a fun country! :)
We saw a display on the history of Kawaii - Japan's CUTE culture. It originates from the Shinto traditions of simplicity and harmony, but in modern times, the kawaii culture is best represented by a myriad of characters like Hello Kitty, Pikachu, Domo-Kun, and Rilakumma. Korea has something similar called Aegyo. The shops felt VERY Kawaii. It's exactly how I would imagine parts of Japan. They also had "Pick a Pearl" experience in the Mitsukoshi store, where they had a huge salt water tank with oysters. You pick one, they open it up for you, and the discovery of your pearl is accompanied by drums, handclapping, a little sing-songy chant, and a ceremonial bow. It's fun.
We caught a glimpse of a cool drum show from a distance.
For food we tried the Ginger Beef Yaki Udon and Frushi (fresh pineapple, strawberry, and melon rolled with coconut rice, sprinkled with toasted coconut and whipped cream with raspberry sauce). It doesn't look as good as it tasted ;)
America
I know we watched a film about the history of America, but I honestly can't remember it much, so I guess I wasn't too impressed ;) America, you gotta represent better!
We did have some yummy food though - Spicy Blackened Shrimp with Cheddar Cheese Grits, Brown Gravy, and Sweet Corn Relish.
Italy
Seeing that we had just spent our previous Spring Break in Italy, I don't think the fake Italy had much to offer us ;) The shops were mostly high-end stuff, like you'd find in Milan, but that's not our cup of tea. To top it off, we made the huge mistake of getting this gelato for our taste of Italy....
Come on Disney! This shouldn't even be at your park (shakes head disappointingly). I'm sure Italy had better food to offer, but we opted to just move on.
Germany
Oh, how we miss you!
Snow White and the 7 Dwarves, representing!
We even found her wishing well.
We chose to try the Nudel Gratin. That was a bad choice. I mean, it was good, but it was basically baked macaroni and cheese. There's nothing German about that. We didn't end up getting anything else, and it's my number one regret.
China
The shops were so beautiful and elaborate.
We saw a circle vision, 360 degree film called Reflections of China. You'd better believe it made me want to go to China! I decided to get egg rolls because they were cheap enough that I could get 1 for each of us, which is definitely NOT what I was doing with all the other food. We were sharing EVERYTHING between 3 people (2 dishes for the 6 of us). I'm not rich you know! They were just your typical egg roll. Nothing special. But seriously, they're not even really Chinese, are they?
I know you can meet Mulan in China at certain times, but we didn't catch a glimpse of her.
Norway
Norway is all about the trolls and Vikings
Plus Elsa and Anna
I waited in line with Madleyn to meet the Frozen princesses, since the line was only 15 minutes.
Anna tried to talk her ear off
We also had fast passes to the Frozen ride, which was a little over hyped, as all new rides are ;)
I loved this church, which is an almost full-sized replica of a Norway's 12th century Gol Stave Church.
I had really been wanting to try a bakery in Norway, but it was closed for remodeling :( So we picked up a few goodies in the shop.
On the back of the bag of Seigmenn there was, what looked like, some kind of story or explanation in Norwegian, so I asked one of the ladies working there to translate it for me. Seigmenn means jelly men. Basically it said that the only part of this bag that is boring is the fact that these jelly men are just waiting and waiting for the day that they can finally be freed from the bag. In fact, if you listen closely, you can hear them yelling for joy when you first open the bag.
You'd think they'd scream with pain when you ate them, but no.
Mexico
Inside this Mesoamerican step-pyramid is an amazing set up of shops and a restaurant. I can't believe I forgot to take pictures inside, but they probably wouldn't have turned out anyway, since it was dimly lit. They also had an art display inspired by the new "Coco". I wanted to buy all the things.
The 3 Caballeros represent here, and they have their own ride inside the pyramid.
We ate a Slow-Braised Pork Taco with Apple Relish, Goat Cheese and Chile de Arbol Sauce. Good stuff, and I'm not usually a fan of goat cheese.
And that was the last country. Boo. It was so much fun, and I'd love to go back one day.
Favorite Ride:
Joe - Soarin'
Ruth - Soarin'
Cora - Spaceship Earth
Joseph - Test Track
Madelyn - Test Track
Alex - Test Track
Favorite Country:
Joe - Japan
Ruth - Morocco or Japan
Cora - Mexico or Morocco
Joseph - Japan
Madelyn - Norway
Alex - Japan
Favorite Food:
Joe - Chicken Kebabs
Ruth - Corned Beef and Cabbage or Chicken Kebabs
Cora - Frushi
Joseph - Frushi
Madelyn - Seigmenn
Alex - Frushi
Of course, the best part of any trip is the people that you are with, and we were with some pretty great people.
Good Times. Until Next Time....
Oh, and here's one more video compilation that Cora made.
