Off to a rough start..

School started a week ago...



My son didn't get the teacher that I thought would be the best fit for him. We tried to switch, but the principal gave us an option that was unacceptable. For now we're going to see how it goes, and document anything unusual. I'm volunteering in class this afternoon, so I can see the dynamics of the class first hand. I'm hoping all will be well, and we won't have to go to the district or transfer schools - unless, of course, hubby gets a new job elsewhere. But that's another story...

I have been taking advantage of longer school hours to create new jewelry. Money has been tight for new supply purchases, so I've been seeing what I have and going from there. So far I've made these necklaces out of vintage belt buckles, and the earrings are from my mom's button stash.

I got to go to the "World of Color" Meet-Up!!!

A couple of weeks ago, Disney announced they were doing a meet-up at California Adventure, open to the first 300 people who RSVP'd via e-mail.. I thought I'd try, but never thought I'd get in... but I did - as well as my son, who was my guest.

So last Thursday we got to Disneyland a little early. We met up with some friends at Disneyland and tried to keep cool while going on a few rides. Before we knew it, it was time to head over to the check in table. At check in they gave us wristbands and a packet that contained a photo of "World of Color" and a list of who we would be seeing - Sayre Wiseman, Steve Davison and Mary Niven - who were all involved in the creation of this fabulous show.

We had a bit of time, so after we grabbed a bite to eat, Colin (my train obsessed boy) wanted to see the new trolley tracks. He is waiting very patiently for these to open...



When it was time, we headed over to Stage 17 in the Hollywood Pictures Backlot area..



After going inside, we waited a few minutes before they opened a curtain to the stage and seating area.



What followed was a very interesting and entertaining evening, listening to stories of the show by the creators..



followed by a really great viewing spot for "World of Color"! For those of you who haven't had a chance - here's some parts of the show:







Here is the Disney Parks Blog recap of the night as well.

Here is a photo of the swag we all got, including a special apple!


I am so happy I got to experience this! I can't wait for a chance to go to the next meet-up!

Vacation Wrap Up

So when I last left my vacation adventures, we had 3 days of vacation left...

Colin loves trees. Nebraska City is the home of Arbor Day and the Arbor Day Farm Tree Adventure.

It was very nice - it had trails and a tree house.. here's some pics -











At the end of your tree adventure, you get a free tree to take home and plant. Colin and Grandma planted one..



The next day we had tickets to the Omaha Royals game at Rosenblatt Stadium. Many years ago, when I was in college, I worked at Rosenblatt as a concession stand manager. In the years following, I went to several games and knew many of the season ticket holders and ball players. It was a shock to me to find out that this is Rosenblatt's last season - they are tearing it down to make a bigger parking lot for the zoo.













The Royals lost, btw...

The next day we headed back to the Kansas City area. We ran into some flooding on the highway around Nebraska City...





In the second picture, that water is completely covering the right lane..

Once we got to Kansas City, we visited with some old friends before dropping Colin off with the grandparents so Chris and I could have a nice dinner alone. The next morning we headed home.

Our summer adventures didn't end there.. we've managed to have a bit of fun since being home - I'll share some of our fun at a later date..

I hope you've enjoyed our vacation! :)

A New Wardrobe!

I have been reading a blog called New Dress A Day for a while now. It's very inspiring because A. cash is low for new clothes and B. I hate the styles/colors/fabrics at the stores right now.

I decided to try my own makeover of a thrift store dress. Saturday the local thrift had a 40% off sale, so I got this for $4.60.



Awful, isn't it? Not flattering in the least... Even the camera was disgusted - it didn't even take a good picture!! ;)

So, after thinking about what I wanted to do with it, I decided to turn it into a tunic. I cut off some length, and those awful sleeves. After hemming, here's what it looks like now:



Much better! I love the flutter sleeves! It gives me a whole new silhouette! (of course, it would help if it wasn't laundry day, and I have on some pants that are too baggy..)

I can't wait to hit the thrift stores again... Unfortunately, the local ones here are all so pricey.. I see a trip to Ventura in my future... :)

P.S. I haven't forgotten about finishing up our vacation... I have just a couple of days to go....

Go Big Red!

One afternoon we decided to go to Elephant Hall at the University of Nebraska. It's officially called Morrill Hall, but it's always been known as Elephant Hall.. It was always a favorite spot of mine when I was a child - and I love the fact my son loves it now too! It's very similar to the Natural History Museum here in LA. It's not really big, but at least you can see everything with a 6 year old in one day without any complaints of being tired.. ;)















After the museum, we took a little walk down the street to Memorial Stadium, home of the Nebraska Cornhuskers! Colin has been to one Nebraska game, but it was when they played USC here. This was his first chance to see the stadium.









To be honest, I don't think he was overly impressed. :)

Insurance Adventures and a Farm..

What to do when you get sick on vacation and need a doctor? We had two options - emergency room or finding a local provider our insurance would cover. We were staying in Leavenworth, Kansas. The nearest urgent care our insurance would cover was in Shawnee, Kansas. So we packed up the boy and went to the doctor. He was diagnosed with pneumonia - a very mild case, luckily. My husband had it before vacation, so I'm guessing that's how Colin got it, even though we tried to do everything we could to avoid contamination. He got some antibiotics, and the doctor said they would knock it out in two days.

The next day he was better - hardly coughing at all. So we tried to salvage a little bit of fun and went to Deanna Rose Children's Farmstead. He had a lot of fun there...

















Chris, on the other hand, maybe didn't have so much fun...



Colin was doing very well, until we took a hayrack ride that stirred up dust and his coughing. On the way back to Leavenworth, he started vomiting. It was not a good way to end the day for us, as we had to clean out the back of the van. Colin, on the other hand, felt completely fine and spent a few hours playing in the bath.

The next day we headed up to Lincoln, Nebraska to see my parents. Colin proceeded to vomit once or twice a day for the next 4 or 5 days. We ended up going to a different urgent care in Lincoln on the 4th of July, where we got another antibiotic that really did work well and right away, thank goodness. In the meantime, his Kansas grandparents came up to Lincoln, as did his great-aunt so we could have a nice 4th. We bought lots of fireworks, and had a fun shooting them off. Colin watched out the window, as it was too smoky for him to be outside. We kept things low key for a couple more days, with only family visits. Once he got over the vomiting and the coughing stopped, we crammed in a lot of activities in just a few days...

Next up, a trip to the University of Nebraska....

If you want to see more pictures, please visit Flickr.

Etsy-versary Giveaway Winner!

I went to random.org to pick the winner... and the number was 3, so Andie is the winner! Andie, I will be contacting you via e-mail for your address.

Thanks for playing! :)



p.s. the vacation blog posts will resume soon...