Back to posting...

Wow! It's been a while since I posted last. So much has happened....

Ken has celebrated his 20th high school reunion, we've taken 2 trips to the beach, Kevin has started 2nd grade, and our pool is shot.

As for the reunion, we only went to the dinner Saturday night, but had a blast. Unfortunately, there were a lot of friends that didn't get to make it. But, there were a lot of people now out of state that did make it.

The trips to Panama City Beach were wonderful. The first one was just Ken, Kevin and I. The second, we crashed at my parents condo. We had a great time on both trips. And luckily, there was no oil seen anywhere. But, on the day we left while visiting with my parents, a large 5,000 lb oil tank washed up right in front of our townhouse. They had to close the beach for 3 days. So, we really missed that by the skin of our teeth. On both trips, we did get to visit a new beach...Crooked Island. What a find! We walked for miles, only seeing a few people. But man, did we find the shells and sand dollars! This will be our new "Mexico Beach". Mexico Beach used to be the desolate area to find all sorts of treasures. But since the town is building up, there is too many people. It's sort of lost that inhabited feeling for us. But hey, all in the name of progress.
So, Kevin has now started 2nd grade. That will be in another post, as I am still trying to recover from the first week of school. Man, no one told me home schooling would be this hard!

As for the pool. We noticed last week that the level had dropped in the pool. We knew it had been pretty hot lately, but not that hot! We tried to find the hole, but no luck. Oh well, it's a slow leak...should get us through till we close. Then next spring, we'll have to buy a new one. Good thing there was a hole too. A few days ago, Kevin "accidentally knocked" Fluffy the cat into the pool. The cat managed to claw 3 good sized holes in the side, not to mention in Kevin's hand as he tried to "save" him. Funny how kids can turn the story around to make them look like heroes. The cat was fine, although a little traumatized. He's been much more loving to me, not so much to Kevin. The cat knows the truth!

Sick of dealing with misleading ads...

I have recently begun my quest for finding the perfect Spring/Summer getaway. And, as many of you that already know me, I am always on the lookout for a good deal. As the search begins for a rental unit, I usually start with VRBO.com. I've always had good luck in finding some really nice places at good rates, and I love the fact that you can see photos of the exact unit your are checking on. Not to mention, you get to deal with the owners directly....well, most of the time. After all, isn't that what VRBO stands for - Vacation Rentals By Owner?

Anyway, I was able to find several units (34 to be exact) that had a great rate, unfortunately by a rental company. I do not like dealing with rental companies since they have so many added on fees, etc. So, I see that this one unit is listed for $495 plus taxes and fees. So I call the company, since they will not return any of my email's requesting a quote. So, I speak to this lady today that tells me that the particular unit I am asking about rents for $1295 a week PLUS taxes and fees. I ask her to look it up on VRBO and explain why the rate has jumped from $495 to almost tripled. She states it says under the rates that "rates are subject to change without notice". I guess that means that even though the page said it had been updated that very day, you can put whatever price you want to get someone to call long distance, only to be mislead. I mean, I could understand if it hadn't been updated for the next year or something, but to list a low price just in the hopes that someone will "bite" is so dishonest. I was furious! I fired off 2 letters, one to the company in particular, and one to VRBO to let them know what kind of company is using their site.

My main argument is....if you are not held responsible for what you post, heck, I could post I have a studio apartment in a secluded, wooded area with wildlife around and great views to rent out for a $1 a week. Then when you call, you find out that it's my son's playhouse in the back yard next to the dog's pen, with a view of my vegetable garden. And, oh, that $1 a week is now $100 a week!

I know, I need to get off my soapbox, take a deep breath and realize that there are some very dishonest people out there. But, when are these people going to be called on it and held responsible for their actions? When a company prints the wrong price on a product, what happens? Can they just decide once you get up to the register that they are going to charge you triple instead of the price printed?

Even though I have had a very bad experience with this one particular company, I will continue to use VRBO. There are some very nice and reasonable people out there. I don't want the bad ones to overshadow the good ones. But, I will definitely put this "lemon of a company" on my naughty list. Someone has to speak up.

Disney - Day 2 at Epcot, Magic Kingdom and Wilderness Lodge

OK, so Day 2 started off nice and early. We waited forever in the bus line to go to the Magic Kingdom before opting out and hitching a ride to Epcot. We needed to get some autographs for Kevin's book and they are always at the Character Spot. So we headed to Epcot and got some great pictures and autographs.

Here's our favorite Disney character....Donald...

Of course, Mickey was there too...

And if Mickey's there, then so is Minnie...

Don't you love the way Pluto signs a book...

So, as soon as we had gotten all the autographs (Goofy wasn't there), we boarded the monorail and headed to the Magic Kingdom. Kevin loved riding the monorail...

As soon as you walked into the Magic Kingdom, you could tell that it was Fall. The had all the areas decorated for the Halloween shows. I wanted to get some of the picture windows that were decorated, but with the streets so crowded and we were constantly on the go, I didn't. Maybe next year...

As you can see over the castle, there was a huge chance of rain. Of course, we didn't mind that at all. It was so hot, something around 95 degrees....probably closer to 100 with the heat index. So, once it did start to rain, boy did it feel good...

This was the Move It, Shake It Celebrate It Street Party. So cool....

Waiting in line to ride Pirates of the Caribbean (I was looking for Johnny Depp)...

Splash Mountain....great way to cool off....

This is the Celebrate A Dream Come True Parade. We were dripping with sweat, but Kevin had a blast. We even had dancers stop in the middle of the parade and wish Ken and I a happy anniversary. They really make you feel special...

Here is Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Kevin loved it and so did we...

It's a small world ride. I remember riding this when I was 13...

The Tomorrowland Transit Authority ride. It was nice just to sit back, relax and be in the shade for a while...

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh....

The Haunted Mansion. Ken and I loved this ride, Kevin didn't really care for it much (I think it scared him). I wanted to ride it at the Halloween party, but I ended up sick and didn't feel like it. Just my luck, huh?

It was getting late and we had reservations for dinner in another resort. So, as we were leaving, I caught a glimpse of the Castle at night....kind of spooky....

So, we climbed aboard a boat and rode over to the Wilderness Lodge. Let me tell you, if we could afford it, this is the place we'd stay. You feel like you are in some national park out west...

Tonight, dinner was at the Whispering Canyon. Chef Eddie was incredible! He made Kevin feel so great and really put our worries to ease. During dinner, they also announced that it was our anniversary, had us stand up and everyone yell "congratulations", and then surprised us with 2 glasses of champagne on the house. Oh, and the food was great too! We will definitely eat here again, probably a couple of times during the next stay.

Well, that was the end of our second day at Disney. By day 2, this is already one of the best trips we had ever been on. Too bad you just can't live IN Disney. Spending all day acting like a kid, playing, relaxing, eating....sounds pretty good to me. Well, better catch a ride back to the Sports Resort and get some rest. Until the next day...

Disney...Day 1 at Epcot

Well, we've been back for more than a few weeks and I'm just now getting my pics downloaded. I am going to try to post a new day of our trip at least a few times a week, time permitting.

What a great trip! Ken and I agreed that this is the best trip we have ever been on. We are planning, economy permitting, that we will make this a yearly thing. I wish we were heading back this weekend. We were so worn out, but it was well worth it.

Here is a pic of our resort, All Star Sports Resort. It was a value resort, but still very nice. Had tons to do there, including several pools, playgrounds, play areas for the kids (and adults), an arcade, a huge restaurant/eatery, and a nice shop. We may try to move up to a moderate resort next time. The rooms will be bigger and the beds go from doubles up to queens. Also, the only other downside to a value resort.....crowds. I heard someone say that all of the All Star resorts were sold out. This in the last week of September, which is supposed to be Disney's slowest time.

Here's our room....RM 7121

Some of the cute towel designs left for us daily...

Our bathroom (done in sports wallpaper)...

Kevin doing his happy dance. If you know my child, he does this dance when words are just not enough to explain his happiness...

Ken and I had been buying Disney stuff for several months to put in a bag and hide in the room as a surprise for Kevin's first trip there. He was so excited...

This is the play area right outside our room. Kevin had a blast climbing on all the X's and O's....

The huge helmets, Coke cups, footballs and surfboards were amazing....

So, we drove half way the day before, which allowed us to arrive at Disney before 3pm. We were all so excited that once we got unpacked, we hit Epcot. We had dinner reservations that night at Teppan Edo in the Japanese section of The World. So, we decided, we would just go there and spend the rest of the day. What a blast! I remember going to Epcot when I was around 13, but I don't remember it being this fun. We started out at Spaceship Earth. The lines were only around 10 minute waits, so it was wonderful.

Kevin was happy we finally get to ride some rides...

Ken and I were happy that we were finally able to get to Disney....

This was one of Kevin's favorite rides, The Seas with Nemo...we rode it 3 times....

This is the aquarium that you get to walk around after your ride on Nemo...

Kevin found some bunnies....they were everywhere in Epcot...

A view across the lake in Epcot to The World....

Kevin's first meal in a restaurant....EVER! We ate at Teppan Edo. It's like a Kanpii type restaurant where they cooked the food at your table. Disney is great on dealing with food allergies. This made our trip even more special (and I didn't have to cook)...

Here's Ken wearing Kevin's chef's hat the restaurant gave him for his birthday. Ken forgot his glasses in the room, so not only was it dark outside, but with the hat he looks like he's had too much to drink....but he didn't...

After dinner, the park was closed, so there were no people around. We were able to walk around The World showcase and enjoy the evening. Here is a shot of the Earth as we were leaving...

This was a great day! Next up...Day 2 at the Magic Kingdom!

Food Allergy Camp and Recipe #A17 Corn Fritters

Busy Busy Busy....that's how our life has been the past couple of weeks. We knew September was going to be rushed, but boy has things flown by. It seems like yesterday we had 108 days till the Disney trip....now we are down to 7 days! Not only that, but Food Allergy Camp has come and gone. We had a wonderful time, but are so sad that it will be another year before we can hopefully attend again. After the photos, I have posted a great recipe....Corn Fritters! I love corn fritters....well, any fritter will do. But these are so good....and better for you than the original (<:

As for camp, what a great time. The theme this weekend was Pirates and Princess. We got to see a lot of our friends from last year, and we made many more new friends. We also got to go fishing and they had an unbelievable Treasure Hunt for the kids. Of course, we adults had just as great of a time. The camp staff spread gold and silver coins all throughout the camp area in the grass, along with gold and silver painted rocks. We all ran around like mad finding these things and putting them in our bags. Then Kevin got to take his loot to a "bank" and trade it in for play money. Then, with the play money, he got to walk around a little "town" and spend it. He got tons of toys (5 Ty Beanie Babies, squirt guns, Frisbees, 3 Bug's Life stuffed animals, bubble guns, etc. ), he could get his fortune read, tattoos, soak a counselor, etc. It was so much fun. Most of us spent the whole next day looking for more coins in the grass! That seemed to be more fun than anything. I had such a great time walking around with a group of young kids, pointing out loot and watching them run screaming towards it. But not only was the activities a blast, but the food....wonderful! The staff really took extra precautions to make sure that we all had ingredient labels, no cross contamination, and tons of options for various allergies. Ken and I were so stuffed by Sunday! Here's some photos of our weekend...

There was bowling...

fishing...

boating....

dancing....

great food....

face and body painting at the treasure hunt....

swimming....

and all the loot that Kevin got from the treasure hunt...

It was a great time!

Kevin has his first soccer game tomorrow. He missed last week due to camp, and he'll miss the next 2 following due to Disney. Hopefully the weather will hold out and we can get in one game at least. He's so excited. I'll try to post pictures as soon as possible.

Here is the recipe....

Corn Fritters

½ cup bread flour
½ cup self-rising flour
2 tbls soy milk
1 tbls melted soy butter
¼ cup cream style corn
2 tbls sugar
1 tablespoons water, 1 tablespoons oil, 1 teaspoons baking
powder*
½ tsp baking powder
Cooking oil

Preheat oil in heavy saucepan or fryer to 350.

*Combine the water, oil and baking powder in a small bowl until powder dissolves and ingredients fizz. Set aside.
Mix soy milk, water-oil-baking powder mixture, soy butter, and corn. Stir in dry ingredients, mix well. Drop by spoonful into hot oil, fry until golden brown.

Makes 12 fritters

I may not have time to post next week. Since we leave on Friday the 25th for out trip, I will be very busy this week washing and packing. I will, however, post as soon as we get back from our trip, including pictures....lots and lots of pictures. Until then, have a great weekend!