Auntie N, Auntie N!

     I got to see my aunt, Natalie today!  She was in town with some friends, and I was lucky enough to get some spend part of the day with her at Epcot, for the Food & Wine Festival.  As if the festival couldn't get any better!

     I met up with them first thing in the morning.  We headed into Future World, and hopped on Spaceship Earth, before making our way to Soarin'.  I love getting to take people on Soarin' for the first time, it's so unlike any other ride ever!
    Once we'd done our rides, we headed to the main event, the festival!  We made our way around the World Showcase pretty quick, which was great for me, as I still had to go to work this afternoon.
     My passport for the festival has already been stamped for every country, so I continued to try new things to check off.  Some good (rice pudding!), and some not so good (potato leek waffle with braised beef).  It was pretty sad to leave and say goodbye, but it was a fun morning, and was wonderful to see a familiar face from home!

xoxo

Baers at The Boardwalk

     On their way back from their own vacation, my parents made another stop in Orlando, for a mini-vacation with me!  We checked into The Boardwalk Resort yesterday, and I headed straight there after work (in costume and all!).  We had a sweet room with a water view, right above the boardwalk, which is filled with places to grab a bite and little shops.  We were also given MagicBands for the first time, which was pretty sweet!
     We walked downstairs and got some dinner from The Boardwalk Bakery.  They had the best lobster roll sandwiches!  This time, we had purchased the Quick Service Dining Plan, which turned out to be a really great value.  Anything to help make dining in Disney cheaper can't be bad! We snagged a table outside, right by the water to eat, and strolled up and down the walkway a bit.  It's such a nice place, I'd definitely love to stay there again!

      In the morning, we got up pretty early, and grabbed breakfast at The Boardwalk Bakery.  Another good meal, props to you Bakery!  We then took advantage of possibly the best perk at The Boardwalk Resort, the walkway right into Epcot.  It took us about 10-15 minutes to walk right into the park, smack between the France and the UK pavilions, perfect for Food & Wine attendees like us!

     We made our way around again, tasting and collecting stamps from around the World Showcase.  This time however, I completed my passport!  I tried at least one thing from every country!  The best thing from today's venture was definitely the Warm Chocolate Pudding with Bailey's Cream from Ireland, pretty decadent!
     We didn't stay into the evening this time however, because my parents still had a drive home in front of them.  So, after stalling for as long as possible in the hotel lobby, I had to say goodbye to them yet again.  I don't know that it will ever get easier!

"It's not goodbye, it's see ya real soon!" - Mickey Mouse

xoxo

"You're never too old to be young" - Snow White

     Yesterday, the girls of apartment 10106 got all prettied up early in the morning, to head to Magic Kingdom, for breakfast at The Crystal Palace.  Crystal Palace is a pretty, airy place, right off Main Street, where you can dine with Pooh Bear and the gang.

 

 

      The restaurant is beautiful, and the breakfast was delicious, but I'm definitely there for the characters.  Those little babies are so sweet!

 

      After breakfast, we headed down towards the castle, for some photo ops before Brittany had to leave.  We couldn't pass up the chance to take some fancy castle photos!

     Once Brittany headed home, we wandered around Magic Kingdom, and of course, headed back to pay a visit to the man.  He was so feisty yesterday!

 

 

 

 

     We left MK in the early afternoon, when it started to get hot and very crowded with tour groups.  But it was a great morning with great company and photos!

xoxo

Scoop Team Saves City!

     This morning, after baking some fabulous Pumpkin Cinnamon Struesel Muffins, Brooke, Alyssa, Ashley and I headed to Universal Studios.  When we left this morning, I had to put on a sweater, because it was actually chilly!

 And sweaters of courser, equal Christmas. 

     We did the usual, rode some rodes, met some Dr. Seuss characters, got some less-than-disney-quality popcorn, and did some shopping.

 

 

      As we headed out from the park, we decided to head to Joe's Crab Shack to meet up with some of our friends for half-priced appetizers and drinks.  I love Joe's!

 

 A day ended by a bucket of garlicky mussels and the best of friends is okay in my book!

xoxo

Seagulls at the Beach

     Yesterday was a great day.  Brooke, Alyssa and I loaded up into my car, and headed to Clearwater, FL for a beach day!  We got up fairly early, grabbed some sandwiches from Wawa, and I made the 1 hr 45 minute drive to the coast.
     When we got there, I was a little disappointed at the color of the water.  I suppose it was a combination of my being used to the ocean side of Florida, versus the gulf side, and a storm that had kicked up sand from the night before.  Either way, it was a beautiful day for the beach, the sun was out but it wasn't sweltering hot (which tricks you into thinking you don't need to reapply sunscreen...), and it wasn't crowded at all.

      The seagulls in Clearwater were so aggressive!  They were climbing onto our towels, and while I was eating my sandwich, I went to touch my head, and touched a seagull, it was right there!  I TOUCHED A SEAGULL.
     After a couple hours, we were all pretty burnt out, so we loaded up and headed back.  The drive back felt so much longer!  If I had just been a passenger, I would have been passed out in the backseat for sure. We got home, and after a round of showers, compared hilarious, painful sunburns.  It was then decided that Olive Garden was a good idea.  If we weren't tired before, adding some pasta to the mix really did us in.  It was an early night for us!
   

     It was great to decompress from all things Disney for a day, and to be back near the ocean, even if it was the wrong coast! 

     After work today, I did a quick wardrobe change (and nabbed some free chocolate!), and headed to Epcot to meet up with my beach girls, who had spent the day there.

Fresh watermelon juice, one of my new favorite Food & Wine Festival treats!

xoxo