long week short post

i've been meaning to post about the rest of our disney weekend but with company in town i just haven't had the time. now i'm playing catch-up. i think i'll just summarize the rest of the trip with photos. disney photos.

we both had a lot of fun. it was a bit chilly the first few days we were there. i wore my app. state sweatshirt pretty much the whole time. we found that hitting the parks early and using the fast pass system we didn't have too long a wait for most rides. i think the longest we waited was for splash mountain only because we had a fast pass for space mountain and we really wanted to get in as many rides as possible so we stood 45 minutes in line. it's funny cause i thought disney had more rides than they actually did, at least adult rides. maybe cause everything is spread out over four parks with three or four major rides at each park it seemed sparse. my favorite was the new aerosmith rocknroller coaster and aaron's was the tower of terror both at disney's hollywood studios. we'll have to go back again, we weren't able to spend much time at animal kingdom. with spring training games in the middle of each day we had to plan accordingly and we only had a morning to spend there. our main objective was to ride the new everest coaster, but when we got there it seemed like it was everyone elses plan too.

spring training was a great experience. cardinals weren't looking too hot though. they played the atlanta braves and lost both games. they've practically got a whole new team. i found myself asking, "who's that and where's he from?" a lot during both games. unfortunately with our new location the only time we can see the redbirds play is if it's against cincinnati. aaron was contemplating getting a satellite dish just to watch games this season. i think he might just wait til the team is in better shape all-around.

the day after we got back from disney, nate and katie arrived from illinois. it was their first trip to the high country and i have a feeling it won't be their last! we got some fly-fishing in. katie actually caught a rainbow trout in the first 20 minutes we were out there. aaron, danny and i have been fishing a countless number of times and none of us has ever reeled in a thing. so kudos to katie for her catch. to sum up the rest of the weekend...wii, shopping, hiking, drinking and tapas! we all had a blast. matt, kristin, max and grandma westphal are heading up here saturday. we've got a little bed and breakfast going on here now!

yesterday we took bosco in to get a little snip-snip. yes, i decided in order to curb his pee problem we had to be a little aggressive. i quickly regretted the decision when we had to drop him off, but he's home now and doing great. i decided to post a pic of the two of us from a few months ago. hopefully our problem is solved.

blogging molly

we actually had a direct flight from charlotte to orlando. i don't remember the last time we didn't have to transfer planes to go anywhere. that put us in florida at 2 p.m. friday. we checked in at our hotel. a doubletree suites close to downtown disney. hung out there for a little while then decided to walk the 20 minutes to downtown disney.

aaron had looked up shows before we left and saw that flogging molly was playing at the house of blues. what a great way to start our weekend we both thought. luckily he bought tickets online because when we headed over there we saw it was sold out on the marquee. we both were surprised at how popular they had become. danny had mentioned they would be signing autographs at the virgin megastore across the way from the show so we stopped by there to check it out. there were two members still there when we arrived. just chatting with fans. we had planned on getting one of their new cds signed for dan but we thought it was a little cheesy to walk up to one in the middle of his conversation and hold out a cd for him to sign. plus we had no clue who the band members were. we know who the singer is and that's about it. and he certainly wasn't one of the two standing there. we decided to just head over to the show and get a bite to eat before it started.

unfortunately, aaron had a bit of a stomach bug and really wasn't feeling the flow of food or show. it's really unusual for him to get sick, especially while on vacation. he stuck it out and ended up having a good time. i had decided not to bring a purse, so i had had my i.d. and camera in my back pocket. little did i know, there was a restriction on cameras at the venue. i tied my sweatshirt around my waist to disguise the fact that i had it. metal detector found it and i ended up having to pay $2 to check my camera at the door. otherwise i would have had to go all the way back to the hotel to drop it off.

once inside the first band was already playing. "i think the flute player is japanese." aaron said. "i think the whole band is asian!" i said. it was the cherry cokes. it was very weird seeing japanese people playing irish music. they rocked it though. next was the reverand peyton's big damn band. they were okay. they sounded like primus but with a washboard. finally flogging molly took the stage and they absolutely brought the house down. it was so great seeing a show with so much energy. both of us were bouncing around, chanting and singing along. it was an awesome show to start the weekend with. since i got my camera confiscated i had to use aaron's cell phone to take pics. being it was a dark club, none of the photos came out but this one. yes, i have this strange desire to take photos while urinating. it's my thang. i might have to continue my toilet obsession gallery.

back from madness

we're back from our disney/spring training/flogging molly jam-packed weekend. i thought i'd be blogging nightly after we returned home from the day/evening activities. unfortunately, we didn't have internet access in our hotel room, or at least free internet. plus i was completely drained to even "blog now post later." hopefully i can update tomorrow before nate and katie arrive. yeah, we're both excited about their arrival. even more photos to come.

magical weekend

Hey Fans...Here's your chance to catch the Cardinals as they take on the Atlanta Braves at the Walt Disney World Resort!

This extra special Cardinals Spring Training package includes: Three nights accommodations at the Disney Port Orleans Resort or the Disney World Swan Resort with optional additional nights available, Game tickets to two games, March 9 and March 10, at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex, Each guest will receive a 3-day Magic Your Way Ticket with Park Hopper option. Ticket allows entry to one or more theme park each day during stay (Ticket excludes admission to water parks), Custom Cardinals sports merchandise package, including a deluxe travel bag, tee shirt, Cardinals Spring Training cap and team collector pin

yeah, we're going

love lights

one thing i LOVE about christmas are the lights. the twinkle, the glow--there's just something about them that make me feel all giddy and childlike inside. disney feels the same way. and even though the weather didn't scream christmas the light displays did.

if i could get away with having them up year round i would. i just love seeing them on houses, especially way up on the mountainsides. aaron and i debate if we'd ever go crazy with yard art and inflatables. if there was a tactful way of doing it, i'd be all on it. but being a designer i think the idea is pretty much squashed. i'm just too anal when it comes to decor, and most light displays fall on the cheesy side. (no offense to those who have them) we've got our old-school lights up and even though they suck up tons of energy--i love em!

westphal does walt

disney in a day...impossible. especially when toting around four little ones. we did manage to hit up epcot and the magic kingdom. weather: couldn't ask for any better. i don't know how people do it in the dead of summer. lines were fairly fast. we got a fastpass for soarin seven hours later we were riding high. best attraction at epcot and super popular. we did a several more rides with all the kids. little shayna met all the height requirements so she was riding on every ride with the big kids! what a trooper. all in all i had a great time. can't really complain when it's all free. perks of having a disney employee in the family.

i had a great time seeing dana and her family. dana and i chatted into the wee hours every night. we had 12 years of catching up to do. she is a super momma. i must admit i was a bit overwhelmed. going from zero to four is quite an adjustment. even for someone like me. i love kids but i don't think i can manage four. how she does it on her own is beyond me. you go girl! we even got to squeeze in a short visit with oma alyce! exactly how i remembered her. must be the water over there. she looked and acted exactly the same.

i am glad to be home. as nice as the weather was down there, it didn't feel like christmas. i love to bundle up and snuggle under a warm blankets. love to see my breath in the crisp air. snow. and, of course, to see my babies again. although aaron is somewhere in the washington wilderness right now. this is the longest we've been apart since we've been together, 10 days in 10 years, crazy. i talked to him yesterday and he was four hours into his six hour drive from bellingham. then he had a six mile hike ahead of him. he was loving the scenery. hopefully he'll take plenty of photos and i'll make "sometimes aaron" post a blog about his trip upon his return.

i'm going to disneyworld

this time next week i'll be in sunny florida enjoying the company of the mouse. disney in a day? is that even possible? aaron thinks it's unbelievable that we're even going to try. dana assures me it can be done. we'll see what the photos have to report.

busy weeks ahead. i leave wednesday for florida. aaron leaves next sunday for washington state while i return home, maybe we'll cross each others paths at the airport. brian and irina arrive the following friday. mom, dad and aaron arrive/return the 23rd. christmas, new year, oral surgery, academy...the list goes on.

yes, more teeth drama. yesterday i went in to see my orthodontist. after wearing my retainer for extended periods what i thought was my jaw was locking up. come to find out, it's the muscle around my jaw, kinda like a crook in your neck. culprit: my wisdom tooth. it's erupted and causing my teeth to misalign. he ground down the tooth and it was immediate relief. he recommends i get the tooth pulled, otherwise it'll continue to bother me. if it's not one thing it's another. so now i have to plan a tooth extraction sometime before the 18th of january. what a way to ring in the new year!