A Happy Easter

Today was the first Easter in twenty-seven years that there was not an Easter egg hunt in the Heinisch home.  From the first one where Brett sat on his Easter egg basketball to last year's with Cameron as the lone hunter, they had all been fun.  Coloring Easter eggs at the counter, waking up to Easter baskets filled with goodies, watching Cal dominate at the family Easter egg hunts, and taking pictures by the giant blue bunny all made for great memories.  I was sad that those days were over, but so happy talking to each of the Heinisch children and hearing about how much they had enjoyed their own Easter weekend.

Cameron hung out with friends on his floor, attended mass, hid Easter eggs with everyone in the lounge and finally resumed eating meat with Raisin' Caines at 12:01 a.m. on Easter Sunday.  Meg spent Friday night in Jimtown.  She was able to go to Newcomer Jewelry to look at rings, visit Nick's grandparents and then meet Grandma and Grandpa at Hacienda.  Today, she and Nick went to Easter mass and then had brunch together.  Cal spent his Easter Sunday with Maggie's family in Orland Park.  He really enjoyed it and even went home with an Easter basket of his own.  Brett went to New Albany for the weekend to hang out with Karen, go to Easter vigil and enjoy some wonderful food.  

While everyone else was enjoying Easter in the Midwest, Doug and I had a nice day here in Ocala.  We went to 11 a.m. mass and really enjoyed Father Pat's homily.  We had planned on going to Eggs Up Grill for lunch, but they had closed for the holiday.  McAlister's was open, however, and we had fun eating lunch on their patio.  We then took a long walk at Sholom Park where the wild turkeys joined the families playing on the grass.  We watched Purdue beat Tennessee which was an impressive win, but nothing like #11 NC State beating Duke easily to also get a spot in the Final Four.  Today, wasn't the family Easter that we had been used to, but it was fun for everyone.  For that I am incredibly thankful.

Brick City Beer & Wine Festival

Several weeks ago, I read about a Rotary fundraiser happening in downtown Ocala entitled the "Brick City Beer & Wine Festival."  It definitely looked like something that Doug would be interested in going to this weekend, but we decided not to buy tickets to it online.  We wanted to check it out in person first.  The Tom Petty festival in October wasn't what we thought that it would be and I would have hated to spend a lot of money on it.  I had also read about that some of these festivals being scams.  Thus, we thought that the best course of action was to head downtown at 2 p.m. today just to see what it was all about.  If it was a bust, we were going to go to Big Hammock instead.  I had been very interested in going back as I loved their turkey panini.  

The festival ended up being a lot better than I expected.  For one price, Doug got a tasting glass that allowed him to sample over fifty different brewery tents.  I paid the small non-drinking fee and toured the venue with him checking out the speciality vendor tents.  We were there for several hours and Doug tried almost twenty different samples.  Some breweries were local, others were from South Florida.  Doug really enjoyed learning more about them.  I looked at the different specialty vendors and listened to the music from the Battle of the Bands.  I never found the soda tent, but I did buy a Florida state flag to hang in our garage before we left.  My reward for taking Doug was dinner at Big Hammock.  The turkey sandwich was just as good as I could remember.

We spent the rest of the night watching basketball games and hanging out on our back porch by the fire pit.  Last night, we saw IU women's basketball tournament run come to an end against a tough South Carolina team.  It was predicted to be a blowout, but it ended up being a very close game.  The Hoosiers played tough, but lost by four.  I was sad to see their season end.  Illinois men lost tonight, but I wasn't sad about that.  Alabama was the other winner tonight which we didn't really care too much about.  They will play in the Final Four against UConn next weekend.  With a lot of the lower seeds winning this year, it has definitely been one of the most interesting tournaments that I could remember.

A Gorgeous Good Friday in Florida

Doug had to work briefly this morning, but was off for the rest of the day due to the Good Friday holiday.  The weather was beautiful and it was very nice to spend the day together touring Central Florida.  I had picked out a few places within an hour drive of our home for us to explore, some I had been to before, but others were new to me too.

Our first stop of the day was on the east side of Crystal River - Copp Brewery & Winery.  It had received good reviews from Facebook and was the only winery in its county.  It didn't look like much from the outside, but it was really neat on the inside.  There were big copper brewery vats in the back, tables set up with games, a friendly bartender and a beer garden with corn hole.  We knew that the boys would really enjoy it too.  Doug ordered a flight of wine and later a flight of beer to try.  We also split a pretzel that was delicious.

I next took Doug on a tour of the town of Crystal River.  I wanted to show him where my parents and I saw the manatees last January and the beaches along the river filled with kayakers.  From there we drove out to Fort Island Beach.  It is a small local beach on the Gulf of Mexico that I visited when Doug first started working in Ocala.  The wooden walkway was closed due to damage from the hurricane last August, but the beach was filled with people enjoying the sun, sand and water.  We had fun checking it out before we started back to Ocala.

Our last stop on our day trip was StumpKnockers in Dundellon.  It had been recommended to me by several people in my church group.  I wasn't sure about it when we first pulled up as it looked like a shack by the river.  We walked in and Doug liked it immediately.  We ate outside at their Tiki bar by the river.  The service was slow, but the atmosphere was really neat.  The area reminded me a lot of Peace River near my Grandma's home in Arcadia.  Doug ordered Louisiana style gator and I got the blackened catfish.  Both were delicious.  It was a great way to end our day trip through Central Florida.  

The Cenacle

The Cenacle is a small faith-sharing group. It is as old as the Catholic Church itself.  The idea contained in the word cenacle is derived from the meeting of our Lord's followers in the upper room where He celebrated the Last Supper.  The Latin word for supper is cena.  I knew all about the Last Supper and the days that followed Holy Thursday.  Until this April, however, I had never heard of the Cenacle.  Thus, when they asked for volunteers at mass to join the Cenacle at Blessed Trinity, I thought, why not try it.  The worst thing that could happen was that I go once and figure out that it's not for me.  Thankfully, that was not the case. 

We have had two meeting so far and I have gained so much knowledge. There has been so much history shared, prayers said and information about our own church, Blessed Trinity given.  Going into the Easter season, I feel more connected with Christ and the Apostles than I ever did in the past.  We talked a lot today about divine providence and I know that is what our new church in Ocala is.  God knew that I was missing something, I just had to follow His lead.  

Happy 81st Grandpa Cutes

Grandpa Cutes turned 81 today and I was a little bit sad that none of us could be there to celebrate with him.  Cameron, Doug and I had enjoyed taking him to the Channel Marker last year on his 80th and giving him presents of 80 of his favorite things - golf tees, orange slices, etc.  This year he had to settle for phone calls, texts and social media posts from all of us.  Cameron and I had ordered him the perfect gift, but Amazon erroneously delivered it to our home in Florida, so even that wouldn't arrive in time.   

Thankfully, my Dad didn't seem to mind the long distance birthday wishes.  He had fun going to Great Clips to get a birthday haircut and celebrating with Grandma Jane afterward at Waterford Cafe with liver and onions.  I loved the picture that he posted with Cameron's 18 year old balloons held backward to show him at 81.  As Cameron told me earlier today, "I'm glad that Grandpa made it up longer than my balloons."  He was right.  It didn't matter who was there to celebrate today.  Knowing that Grandpa Cutes had "made it another year around the sun" was the best gift.  Happy 81st Grandpa Cutes - friend and supporter of all of the Heinisch family.  

Let's All Quit

Lately, I have listened to a lot of different members of the Heinisch family complain about their current career.  I feel absolutely helpless when they give me specifics on why their job is terrible.  I remember the dread I felt going into school in the morning knowing that I was under appreciated and definitely underpaid.  It wasn't any fun and nothing anyone said made it any better.  Right now I try just to be supportive and empathetic to my family.  I don't know if it helps, but it's the only thing that I can think to do.  I always encourage them not to quit until they have another position secured.  I really don't believe that any of them have plans to leave their current positions.  I know that for the most part they just want a sympathetic ear and that I can lend.

Ultimately, I believe that most jobs are absolutely awful.  Working is hard and finding a career that you love is challenging.  My Dad was one of the few who had a job that he loved and did it well.  Most just follow along, do their best and try to enjoy life outside of the work world.  Maybe I am cynical or it could be that I am jaded by my last year of teaching.  It really doesn't matter either way.  The nice part is that my horrible experience teaching has helped me to be supportive of the Heinisch family and to pray that they have more positive days at work than negative.  

College Wins

Although Cameron finished last in the Heinisch family pool over the weekend, he did have a lot of success in other ways.  First, he was invited to interview for the Kelley Honors program.  He had to give a short speech on Saturday and work on a group project as part of the process on Saturday.  He felt that it went very well.  Afterward, he had awesome seats for the IU Women's basketball game against Fairfield in the first round of their NCAA tournament.  He was once again highlighted by the television cameras in the crowd making for a special memory in the Hoosiers win.

Yesterday, Cameron called to let us know that he had also been recommended by one of his business professor to apply for the peer tutoring program.  If accepted, he would get paid to tutor next fall for five hours a week for one of the Kelley freshmen classes.  He was very excited about that as he wanted to get a job next year and was very interested in tutoring on campus.  

Tonight was the apex of the past three days as he got to watch one of the most exciting wins in IU women's basketball history.  The #4 seed Hoosiers were down almost the entire game to #5 seed LSU.  For awhile they were 8 for 24 in layups.  It was hard to watch, but they did get it figured out and finally took the lead with just under two minutes.  It still went back and forth and the last minute took over fifteen, but IU hung on to win and the girls celebrated in the bleachers close to where Cameron was sitting.  He said that it was the loudest game that he had ever been at and one of the most fun.  We loved watching the game and it were pleased that Cameron had had a wonderful three days in Bloomington.  

March Madness

March Madness has always been one of our family's favorite times of the year.  Even this year when IU had no chance of making the tournament, we all had fun believing that they might still get in by winning the Big Ten Tournament.  When they were ousted by Nebraska in a very lopsided game, none of us stayed sad for very long.  Instead, we talked about next year's chances, new recruits and our picks for the tournament.  I quickly sent out the invites for the family pool and everyone filled out their brackets.

March Madness officially started last Tuesday with the play-in games, but none of us really watched any games until the first round on Thursday.  Most of us watched off and on all day then and again on Friday.  Cameron watched with his floor mates in the lounge when he wasn't in class.  Cal worked from home most of those days and then headed to Indy with his friends for Saturday and Sunday games.  Nick used our YouTube TV to watch when it wasn't maxed out with viewers.  In turn he kept Meg updated on all of the important games.  Brett followed through Grandma and Grandpa's texts while Doug and I kept two different games on most of the weekend with one on the lanai television and another in the living room.  

It was so much fun keeping track of everyone's brackets online, seeing the family texts back and forth, and most importantly watching the #3 seed Kentucky lose in the first round.  There were some heartbreaking games like Wisconsin's early loss or the end of Oakland's Cinderella story run in the second round.  There were also a few extremely boring games with several big blow outs, especially on Friday and Saturday nights.  The biggest news for our family, besides Grandpa's championship pick - Kentucky - falling apart, was the leader of the Heinisch pool after the weekend's games had ended.  Meg had taken a huge lead and still had UNC going strong leading into the Sweet Sixteen.  We were all happy for her, except maybe Nick, who had spent five minutes on her pool after studying his picks for hours landing him in 6th place once the clock ran out in the final game.  First or last, the best part about March Madness is and always has been the family bonding that it creates for us each spring, melting miles away and creating memories that will last a lifetime.  

Gift Shop Volunteer

When I first started with BTCCW, I signed up to work the gift shop at Blessed Trinity.  Several of the women members were in charge of running it and I thought it would be a great way to help out.  Starting was a little more complicated than I would have thought as I had to have a background check which included fingerprinting.  I also had to take an online class from the diocese before I was cleared to volunteer.  Then, I had to be trained on how to work the cash register, open the store and close it.  

This afternoon was the big day as I was scheduled to work in the gift shop by myself for the first time.  I was super nervous about it.  My biggest fear was that I would forget how to work the computer or credit card machine.  Thankfully, there was a cheat sheet that really helped.  Plus it wasn't too busy, so I didn't have to stress out too much.  I did forget where to put the gift shop sign and to open the blinds, but otherwise all went well.

Once I was done, Doug met me at church for 4 p.m. mass.  We had been in downtown Ocala since noon where we had enjoyed lunch together at Mellow Mushroom.  It was such a beautiful day that we took advantage of it by eating outside.  We also stopped at Grandpa Joe's candy shop before I left for church.  Doug spent the time I was volunteering to attend the ten year celebration of the opening of Infinite Ale.  They had food trucks, new beers, music and a huge crowd.  He said that it was a lot of fun even if he was on his own.  I was glad to hear that and felt incredibly blessed that it was a wonderful afternoon for both of us.

Happy 23rd Birthday, Meg!!

I was so glad to have been able to celebrate Meg's 23rd birthday with her last weekend albeit a week early.  I was also extremely happy to hear that she had a wonderful day today.  She worked from home and Nick brought her lunch from Small Cheval.  She heard from numerous friends and family members through texts and social media posts.  Meg was even able to clock out of work a little bit early so they could have dinner at a new restaurant in the heart of the city.  

Meg called tonight to tell us about the gifts that she had received.  She had already opened ours, Cameron and Grandma's, but today Nancy had sent her flowers.  Cal had given her a gift card to one of his favorite restaurant chains.  Brett made plans to give her a joint gift for her and Nick's birthdays.  Meg opened a new record player from Nick which she used immediately to listen to "All Things Must Pass."  She also decided that this was the best time to give Nick's his birthday gift even thought it was twelve days early.  He was completely surprised by the new Nintendo Switch and they spent the rest of the night playing Wii Sports while listening to music.  It sounded like one of her best birthdays ever.  

Uncle Phil's 51st

Today was Uncle Phil's 51st birthday.  We offered to take him out, but he said that he and Molly would just prefer to come over, watch ballgames and hang out.  That sounded perfect to Doug, so I ran to Walmart before they got here to buy dessert.  I had remembered that Phil really liked cheesecake and found one that was the perfect size for two with a variety of flavors.  

We spent a fun evening at home watching basketball, talking about our favorite games from the past, and going over delicious desserts that Phil had had for his birthday years ago including a Spiderman Baskin Robbins cake that was a big hit when he was eight.  We hung out with Molly in the backyard while the guys filled me in on their weekend when I was in Indiana - brewing beer and testing some new ones at Infinite Ale.  Doug and Phil both enjoyed the dessert.  It was the perfect way to celebrate Phil and an enjoyable evening for all.  

Brett's Weekend

While I was traveling in the midwest, Brett was having an awesome weekend with Karen in Bloomington.  It was her first visit to his place and they made the most of it.  They did a walking tour of campus, went to mass, enjoyed meals together and even visited Andrew's family in Bedford.  I was glad that Brett was able to share his favorite places with her - Hot Topic, Phoenix Comic Bookstore, Lennie's and the statue of Hoagie Carmichael.  They were also able to see the movie "Cabrini", a story about the live of Catholic missionary Francesca Cabrini.  Overall, it was a great weekend for them and I loved the pictures that Brett shared.  It was so nice to see him happy and enjoying life.

Back in the Sunshine State

I realized this morning that Southwest now allows you to fly standby on the same date that you have a flight booked.  If they can get you on the earlier flight, they move you to it.  If they cannot, your original flight stays.  Because of this, I thought about changing to a noon flight this morning as my 3:30 one kept stating that it was delayed.  I decided against it as I would be the last person on the new flight and I didn't want to have to scramble to find room for my carry-on.  Also, if I didn't get on the earlier flight, I would have to sit in the airport for an extra three hours.  That didn't sound like much fun.

In the end, I was very glad that I didn't change as my original flight ended up leaving on time.  I also got to spend some extra time with Meg and Nick this morning.  Nick dropped me off at the airport at 12:30.  He said that the lines through security would be light this morning since it was a Monday afternoon.  Nick was correct and soon I was looking for a place to eat lunch.  I was thrilled to see that R.J. Grunt's was now in the B terminal and quickly got in line for a chicken sandwich.  I found an empty gate to sit at where I spent the next couple of hours eating lunch and catching up with Cameron on the phone.  

My flight back went very well.  I found an aisle seat and ended up with an empty seat beside me.  I watched Chicago PD and listened to music on the way home.  We were told that it would be a bumpy flight, but it was relatively calm.  I was delighted to see Doug at the airport when I arrived.  The weather was fifty degrees warmer in Orlando than when I left Chicago which I appreciated very much.  Traffic was light, so Doug and I were back in Ocala before 9 p.m.  I was exhausted from my trip, but super happy that I went.  I was also very glad to be home.  

St. Patrick's Day Lunch

Meg, Nick and I met Cal and Maggie at the Happy Camper in Wrigleyville for lunch.  It was the perfect way to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  It was a little bit crowded, but according to them it was nothing like yesterday.  Cal ordered a feta cheese appetizer for all of us to enjoy and we then each picked out a meal to try.  My turkey sandwich was delicious, but the best part of the meal was listening to what everyone had been up to these past few months.  Maggie was busy with work and her friends.  She also talked about the weddings that she would have to go to this summer and her upcoming trip to Disney World with her family.  Cal updated us on busy season and his St. Patrick's Day weekend.  We filled them in on our weekend of wedding planning and Nick's new drink "Peaches and Cream" that completely curdled when the ginger beer and cream were mixed together.  

After lunch, Meg and I dropped Nick off at their apartment and went to Target to buy his birthday gift.  Maggie left to visit a friend that was in the town and Cal ran to Men's Warehouse to get fitted for his tux for Meg's wedding.  He met us back at Meg's and we spent several hours talking about the Oscars, movies, and everything else happening in Cal's life right now.  We watched the NCAA March Madness picks together and I listened to his thoughts on the tournament.  It was really nice spending time with him and I was glad that he gave up his day off to hang out with us.  

Meg, Nick and I spent the rest of the night going over wedding plans, talking about her hair ideas for the wedding and listening to music for their first dances.  We had talked about going to mass at 7 p.m., but Meg had a migraine.  Instead of going anywhere, Nick made a delicious dinner of chicken sausage and vegetables.  It was a nice, quiet evening which we all appreciated very much.  

Wedding Dress Fitting

 Since I was going to be home this weekend, Meg wanted me to go with her to get her wedding dress altered.  It was actually hard to find a place in the Syracuse area that would do wedding dresses.  A dress maker in Warsaw told me to try The Alteration Shop in Fort Wayne.  Thankfully, they were more than willing to help us and we headed there first thing this morning.  Meg tried the dress on for them and they suggested hemming it.  I agreed.  We also asked them them to add a bustle for the reception.  We were happy to see that the rest of the dress fit perfectly.  They told us that we could pick it up after April 20th.  That sounded perfect to us.  The whole process took less than a half hour and we were back at Grandma's by 11 a.m.  

Cameron had gone to breakfast with Tristan and played golf with Keegan.  He made it back in time to see us before we left for Chicago and to watch the Purdue game with Grandpa.  I was very sad to leave him as we had had a wonderful ten days together for his spring break.  It was happy, however, to be spending the weekend with Nick and Meg.  We had a lot that they wanted to accomplish for the wedding and I was glad to help.  I was also excited to have lunch with  Cal tomorrow as I hadn't seen him since December.

The trip back wasn't too bad until we got to the middle of the city.  The St. Patrick's Day parade was this afternoon and there were a lot of people in town.  Meg couldn't find parking anywhere near their apartment.  Nick said that was really rare.  There were also a lot of drunks walking around so we figured that everyone was celebrating the Irish holiday.  We had talked about going out to dinner, but with the crowds on the street and the wind howling, I offered to pay for Door Dash instead.  Meg picked Nando's and we all enjoyed our food and the quietness of their apartment.  

We spent the rest of the night talking about the wedding, working on bridal shower invitations and listening to All Things Must Pass.  I was really glad that we didn't go out as I ended up getting a terrible migraine.  After some medicine, ice on my neck and sitting in the dark, I felt a lot better.  Nick took advantage of the down time to play Rocket League and we all had a very enjoyable evening.  

Meg's Early Birthday Celebration

Both Cameron and I started our day at Amanda's with a haircut.  Mine really needed it and it was great to catch up with Amanda as well.  Grandma felt a lot better today, but I still picked up a blood pressure machine for her at CVS so that she could continue to monitor it.  Cameron and I kept her and Grandpa entertained all afternoon by playing Euchre.  We all decided that I might be the worst Euchre player ever, but at least we all had fun.

While we were at their home, I also fixed their garage door app.  It had stopped connecting to their internet for some reason.  The biggest concern was the laptop that we had given him.  There was a pop up that kept coming on that said that he had a virus and needed to update his McAfee software.  I ran an AVG Free scan and it said that it was virus free which was great news, but we still weren't sure how to get it to stop sending the message.  Thankfully, someone on YouTube had a tutorial about it and I fixed it in less than two minutes.  Grandpa was glad to be able to finish his taxes without anymore annoying popups.  

Cameron left for Goshen at 6 p.m. to meet Alina for dinner.  The three of us watched Big Ten basketball while we waited for Meg and Nick to arrive.  They had stopped at Nancy and Kyle's for a little while, but were at Grandma's by 9 p.m. which gave me plenty of time to beat Grandpa at Jeopardy.  Once they arrived and Cameron and Alina got back, we all celebrated Meg's birthday.  She absolutely loved all of the gifts and appreciated the George Harrison theme to Cameron and mine.  She couldn't believe that I had found All Things Must Pass on vinyl as she had been looking for it for awhile.  We ate carrot cake for dessert and then played several games before Alina had to go home.  It was a wonderful celebration and I was glad that we could do it in person even if it was a week early.

Traveling to Indiana

Last night while we were at Cheddar's, Cameron and I received a text from Southwest that our flight was cancelled this morning.  I was shocked.  We quickly got on the app and found a flight an hour and a half later getting us to Indy at 1 p.m.  We switched our flight to that and were glad that we would still be in Syracuse relatively early.  The best part was that we would get to sleep in an extra hour and a half.

Traffic was light on the way to the airport.  Cameron and I made it through security relatively quickly and had plenty of time to eat lunch before we found our gate.  Our plane was already there when we sat down.  The flight itself went well once we boarded.  The only bad part was that we had C boarding pass tickets as they took our A ones away when our flight got cancelled.  Thus, it was a little stressful finding a place for my carry-on and getting seats near each other.  In the end, we figured it out and we both had fun watching shows that we had downloaded on our phones.  

Our drive home was easy.  We only stopped once so that I could get a drink.  Grandma and Grandpa were happy to see us when we arrived in Syracuse, but Grandma didn't feel the best.  Her heart rate had risen to 130 beats per minute and wouldn't go down.  I gave her some tips but none of them helped.  Once Grandpa left for the golf course and Cameron went to Goshen, I decided to call 911.  I knew they would check her and let us know if it was serious or not.  They arrived quickly.  Her heart rate was too high as was her blood pressure.  They ran an EKG and said that her heart looked fine.  They thought that it was anxiety and suggested that we call the doctor in the morning if it didn't get better.

The rest of the night was a quiet one.  Cameron hung out with Alina until after the IU game.  Dad and I watched the Hoosiers win a close one over Penn State that gave all of us hope for tomorrow's match up with Nebraska.  Mom's heart rate finally dropped to 118 once Cameron got home, but she still didn't feel the best.  We hoped that a good night's sleep would help.  

A Day of Relaxation

Cameron, Doug and I were home last night earlier than I thought we would be.  We had time to order Marco's and watch a few Seinfeld episodes before Cameron called Alina and Doug headed to bed.  I was thankful that we could sleep in this morning.  Disney was a lot of fun, but I was definitely exhausted today.  Cameron and I didn't have too much on our agenda.  We went to Jaws for lunch, shopped at Bealls and the mall.  We also packed for our trip to Indiana and enjoyed listening to his new vinyls.

Cameron and I picked Doug up from work at 5 p.m. tonight and stopped at Cheddar's for dinner on the way home.  Cameron had never eaten there.  The service was slower than normal, but the food was excellent.  We spent the rest of the night playing Ticket to Ride and watching the Big Ten Tourney.  It was by far the quietest day of Cameron's spring break, but a lot of fun just the same.

The Last Day is Sometimes the Best

We had an awesome three days in Disney, but I believe that today was my favorite.  First, we slept in which was really helpful as I didn't get much sleep yesterday and everyone was still a little tired from the time change.  Once we packed, we headed straight to Animal Kingdom to take full advantage of my DAS pass.  We were able to ride Navi' River Journey, Pandora, Kilimanjaro Safari, Expedition Everest, and Dinosaur plus watch It's Tough to Be a Bug all before lunch time.  Everyone absolutely loved seeing the new baby elephant on the safari trail.

Before we left the park, I was finally able to get a chocolate covered frozen banana and we each found a great souvenir or two to buy before we headed to our car.  As much fun as all of that was, the best part happened while were in the store.  I got an email that Cameron's wallet had been found last night in Epcot.  We were absolutely thrilled and made plans to pick it up at Disney Springs after we played miniature golf at Blizzard Beach.

There was no line on the summer course and we all enjoyed mini golf very much.  Our matches have been super close lately and today was no exception.  I had a five stroke lead going into the last four holes.  I completely fell apart and Cameron really turned it on with three holes in ones on those four.  I did win by one but not before sweating quite a bit.  

The last stop of our trip was Disney Springs.  Brett and Doug secured a table at Splitsville while Cameron and I headed to their lost and found booth.  We couldn't believe it.  Not only was the wallet there, but all of the contents as well including $53.  We were extremely appreciative of that.  Our late lunch was delicious and Brett really enjoyed the crab rangoon sushi that he ordered.  We made it out in plenty of time to stop at the Coke store before we took Brett to the airport.  It was the perfect way to end a wonderful three days at Disney.

Magic Kingdom

Cameron, Brett and I were up early this morning to make it to Magic Kingdom by rope drop.  We had talked about taking a "Minnie" van, but the bus actually arrived before the van would have.  The park was pretty empty for the first few hours of the day.  We figured that it was because it was relatively cool for a Florida morning.  We took full advantage of the low crowds and were able to get on seven different rides by 10 a.m.  My DAS pass helped us once the crowds picked up and we were even able to get on Peter Pan after it broke down.  We finished our time in Magic Kingdom with our favorite snacks and visiting the Main Street stores.  We were all exhausted when we left the park at 2 p.m. but very happy with our day.

Lunch was at the Centertown Market at the hotel.  Brett and Cameron hadn't been there yet and really enjoyed it.  We went back to our hotel to relax and just sat down when Doug arrived.  He finished up his work day at the hotel while Brett napped.  Cameron and I watched some Mickey shorts while I was resting my legs.  Once everyone was ready, we took the Skyliner to Epcot.  The boys went straight to Mission Space while Doug and I headed toward the Journey of Water where we met them afterward to walk through the attraction together.  Next we rode Spaceship Earth and Gran Fiesta Tour  before spending the rest of the evening trying different foods from the Flower and Garden Festival.  I also wanted to make it to the American Pavilion  before the last Rick Springfield concert.  Brett and I were able to get into the concert at the end and thoroughly loved seeing him belt out Jesse's Girl together.  

Unfortunately, our time at Epcot didn't quite end on a positive note.  Right after the concert, Cameron realized that his wallet was missing.  The four of us retraced our steps from the night, but couldn't find it anywhere.  We were in a very large crowd and were afraid that he had been pickpocketed.  I asked the cast member in the store that we were near.  They told us where to go to fill out a lost and found report as he said that almost all lost items are found by custodial staff.  We felt hopeful after that and went to guest services to fill out the form.  By the time we got back to the hotel, Cameron felt a lot better and I was positive that we would get it back the next day.  The best part was none of us let it ruin the evening.  

First Disney Day

It was rough getting up this morning with the time change, but once we got started on our day we were all wide awake.  Brett was up even earlier than Doug, Cameron and I as he had to catch a flight at 6:25 a.m.  Since he lost an hour of sleep that meant that he was really leaving at 5:25 a.m.  He made it to the airport without any issue.  I had recommended that if he was there early enough that he check the 5:30 a.m. flight to see if they had a seat.  Thankfully, he never took me up on that and stayed with his original time.  In the end the first flight of the day was delayed by five and a half hours and Brett was on one of only two flights that made it out on time this morning.  They delays weren't quite over this morning as he had to sit on the tarmac for an hour before there was a spot for his plane to disembark, but that didn't really matter to any of us, we were just happy that he made it to Orlando.

Once he got off the plane, we drove to EPCOT and were happy to start our Disney vacation.  Epcot was extremely crowded by the time we arrived, but it didn't change anything that we had planned.  We stopped at the Cool Club so that the "Big Beverly Guy" could try his favorite drink and the boys could sample a few of the international Coke flavors.  My DAS pass allowed us to ride Soarin' and Spaceship Earth if we wanted to today.  I was also able to book several other rides as well.  We even got a reservation on the new ride, Guardians of the Galaxy.  I had a lot of fun riding all of the rides with the boys.  Without the DAS pass I would have never been able to do so as the wait times would have been way too hard on my leg.  Guardians was a little too hard for me as it was a roller coaster that also spun sideways.  I thought for awhile that I was going to be sick, but once I closed my eyes I did a lot better.  I probably wouldn't go again, but was really glad that I tried it.

Riding wasn't all that we did today.  We also visited the Flower & Garden Festival complete with Disney topiaries, an Easter egg hunt and a lot of delicious food and drinks to try.  Everyone really enjoyed it, but the highlight for me was listening to the Rick Springfield at the Garden Rocks concert.  I thought that I would only know one or two songs, but in the end I could sing every word to all of the six songs that he played.  His voice wasn't as strong as it used to be, but he belted out Jesse's Girl just like when I was 13 years old.  It was so fun to listen to and I knew that middle school me would be very jealous.

Cameron and Brett left on the Skyliner for Hollywood Studios while Doug and I were at the concert.  Once it was over, I grabbed a gondola for The Caribbean Beach where we were staying for the next few days.  It was a quick trip to our hotel and the Skyliner station was extremely close to our room.  Doug drove the Pilot over to drop off our luggage before he headed back to Ocala so that he could work on Monday.  I spent the rest of the evening at the hotel relaxing.  It was a nice hotel and I was able to walk down to the food court for dinner, but the best part of staying at the Caribbean Beach was that I could hear Rick Springfield's two additional concerts.  I couldn't believe it and had so much fun listening to the songs again while I waited for the boys to return.