The Happiest Place On Earth!

Even on Hollywood Blvd. Lexi found her favorite Disney Princess
had her own Star!

I had told you before about how Disney was doing Give a Day, Get a Day this year. And John & my kids had volunteered picking Grapefruit for a local food bank. So all 5 of them received a free ticket to a Disney Park. So we only had to pay for me to get in, since I had to work the day they all volunteered.

When we got there they gave us all these pins to wear
that show we are Volunteers.

I Love Disneyland! After all it is the Happiest Place on Earth! We had a blast! It was a little sad for me though, because this is the first time there that none of my kids wanted to get their pictures taken with all the Characters! Last time it was all about that. My girls & I would spend the majority of the day waiting in line to see every single princess, to get our picture with her & of course her autograph! But this time it was all about the rides!

All of us on Splash Mountain!
(front to back; Lexi, Erica, Kyle, Zach, John & me hiding in the back)

Needless to say, I am not brave when it comes to rides. I tend to battle motion sickness & fear! :) I should have planned ahead better & had more kids, so I could stay longer in the kiddy ride section! Okay, maybe not! :) Here I am in front of my all time favorite ride anywhere . . .

"It's A Small World After All!"

And of course I had to take a picture of the Hula Dancers!

It just makes me happy!

Remember back in the 80's when Michael Jackson's Captain EO came out at Disneyland in 3D? We thought it was so cool! Well, since he has passed away, they've brought it back! It was such a thrill for me to get to share something I saw when I was young with my kids now. And it's still pretty cool!

My oldest son Kyle's girlfriend Olivia & a friend of hers, Heather, were also in California that week visiting Olivia's sister who lives there & they went to Disneyland that day with us too. The two of them went early to steak out a place to watch the fireworks that night. If you've never seen the firework show Disney puts on, you don't know what you're missing! And when we made our way to where they were, this is how they were sitting to make sure they had enough space for all of us to sit:

Heather & Olivia saving places on the sidewalk.
(And getting dirty looks from people who wanted the prime location
for themselves!)

They even came prepared with a deck of cards
to help pass the time.

The fireworks were awesome, put to Disney music & movie themes. We got to see Tinkerbell fly across the sky! I honestly thought she was going to get hit with the fireworks. Then abruptly, the music turns off & they announce due to high winds they can't continue with the firework show. :(

Tinkerbell flying over the Castle!

And speaking of the Castle, earlier that day, one of the cast members working the submarine ride, told us that there was a back entrance to the castle, that many people don't seam to know about, where you can go inside & see the story of Sleeping Beauty. Which is Erica's favorite Princess! So the girls & I did the walk through! They thought it was cool.

Erica in Sleeping Beauty's Castle!
(That's her "sleeping" behind the window, even though it's hard to see)

My Princesses in front of the Castle!

My Prince & his Princess with the Castle as their backdrop!

We stayed until the park closed at Midnight! And for the last ride of the day, the majority wanted to ride Space Mountain for the 2nd time! (Note: I rode just about all the rides, including the Matterhorn, Thunder Mountain & Splash Mountain, but did not do Space Mountain)

Lost in Space!
(front to back: Olivia & Heather, Kyle & Zach, Erica & John)

And while they were all in Outer Space, Lexi & I ended the day riding the Perfect ride for the 2nd time: Yes, that's right: Small World! It was just us two & we had the entire cruise (okay, boat) to ourselves! And for those haters out there, they've even updated Small World, if you look close & are observant, you will see Aladdin & Jasmine flying on the carpet above the Arab countries. You'll also find Pinocchio in Italy! Alice in Great Brittan, Ariel, under the sea & a few other Disney Characters! Now I <3 it even more!

"There's so much that we share, that it's time we're aware,
It's A Small World After All!"

Me, in my Happy Place!

Look who we found!

A great day was had by all. I could go to Disneyland every year & never tire of it! I've always wanted to go at Christmas time. Imagine, my favorite place, in my favorite season. Someday I will make it there! Thank you Disney for the Magic & the Memories!

A Star In Hollywood!

I always knew I'd have my own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame!
(Oh the magic of being married to someone who
knows his way around a computer & Photo shop!)

We went to LA last week for vacation. We had a great time. It has been several years since we've taken an entire week off & went out of state together, as a family. And with both my boys now in college, who knows how many more opportunities we will have. This is the first of several posts I'm sure, to share our adventures with you. The first night we got to LA & checked into our hotel, then headed up to Hollywood! Where all Stars belong!

Me & the kids at Pinks!

Our first stop was the world famous Pinks Hotdogs. Where anyone who's anyone eats! And they've got the pictures on the walls to prove it. You stand in line & when you get to the counter it's just like the Soup Nazi on Seinfeld, you have to order a certain way, I could picture them if you didn't do it right saying "No Dogs For You!" We ordered 7 different kinds of dogs & sides, and without writing anything down, got it all just right! I had a Coleslaw Dog. Yummy!

Kyle at High Voltage!

Our next stop was High Voltage Tattoo Parlor, from the T.V. show LA Ink. John & Kyle would love to get their next tattoos there! Um, Better luck next time! :)

John in front of The Hard Rock Cafe on Hollywood Blvd.

Kyle, Lexi, Erica & Zach in Hollywood!

Then we made our way to Hollywood Blvd. to the Hollywood walk of fame. It's so much fun to walk the street & find the stars of your favorite Actors, Musicians, etc. And BTW there is an iPhone app that helps you locate the exact place of any particular Star you may be looking for! Here's some of our favorites:

Kyle with Johnny Depp!

The Beatles!


And of course, I had to take a picture of my favorite Patrick Swayze! :(

Kyle with Marilyn Monroe!

And our most favorite Star of them all:

This is Lexi & Erica last time we all went to Hollywood,
poising with the Star of Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen!

And this is Lexi & Erica again with the Olsen Twins' Star!
You really are seeing double! :)

We saw the famous Kodak Theater!

And no trip to Hollywood would be complete without Celebrity sightings!

The night we were there we didn't get to see all the hand prints in front of Graumans Chinese Theater, (and I have another really cute picture of my girls when they were little, with their hands inside the hand prints of Shirley Temple there!) because it was all blocked off as they were having a premier for the movie The Expendables. The red carpet was rolled out & lines of Limos were there to pick up the celebs. We hear the crowed yelling "Bruce, Bruce, over here!" Then 2 seconds later a Limousine drives right past us & we literally could have reached out our arm & put a hand flat on the window that had Bruce Willis' face on the other side of it. It happened so fast I couldn't get the camera out to capture our glimpse of Bruce Willis! Sorry. And it's not like it was Silvester Stallone! ;)

Then a couple nights later we were having dinner at Johnny Rockets in the City Walk, outside of Universal Studios. And had another Celebrity sighting.

My crappy camera is not very good, but the girl in the middle of this picture
(I was trying to take the picture discreetly & not appear to be a stalker!) is the girl who plays Adrian on The Secret Life Of The American Teenager! She was done eating & I was going to approach her & very politely ask her if she would mind taking a picture with my daughters, when she got up & left. I don't think my non stalker tactics worked!

This is her on T.V.
But I have to say after all the "talks" I've had with my girls
about how even the movie stars don't really look like they do on TV,
she really disappointed me; She is even Prettier IRL! UGH!
Her hair was straight and she wasn't all super made up.
And she was absolutely Beautiful!
I wish I had gotten a better picture of her.
My girls were excited they got to see her anyway!

Well, that's just 1 part of our great vacation. There is more to come! As they say in Hollywood: Stay Tuned!

Oh Brother!

This weekend we went down to Tucson to help my oldest brother, John Fink Jr. celebrate his retirement. He is retiring as Fire Chief of Golder Ranch Fire Dept. This is actually his second retirement, he became a Fire Chief after retiring from DPS as a police officer & paramedic. And that was after his stint in the Army. I guess you could say he is the Michael Jordan or Brett Farve of Public Safety. I Guess he couldn't decide what he wanted to be when he grew up! :)

A Golder Ranch Fire Truck outside of our Hotel
In Beautiful Tucson, Arizona

I told him this had better be a good party since I was missing Chelsea Clinton's wedding to be there! haha There were over 200 people at this party, including a Senator, a Mayor, a Councilmen, and a former Surgeon General. All colleagues & friends of his. Yeah, he's kinda a big deal! I mean being MY brother & all! :)

Me with my brothers: (Lft. to Rt.)
Marty, Richard, Me, The Guest of Honor John & Danny
(We're missing 1 Brother who lives out of state & couldn't be there!)

They had dinner, drinks, live music, dancing, (for me & my brothers anyway! We really know how to cut a rug! haha) a slide show, a presentation with lot's of people sharing what their chief has meant to them & to the department.

Will the real John Fink please stand up!

One of their guys did an impersonation of him. It was really hilarious, he nailed John's mannerisms & what they all lovingly called "Finkisms!"

Boys never outgrow wanting to play with Firetrucks!
I guess it's just like us girls & our Barbies.

For his retirement they gave him golf lessons (from a left handed golf pro, since John is left handed! Smart on their part) a new golf bag with the department's logo & "Chief Fink" printed on it. They gave him his Fireman's axe & made a really nice case/holder for it with a plaque & a place for his badge inside. It was really an awesome gift & presentation.

"Nice AXE!"

We always have a great time when we all get together. We ate, joked & laughed, filled each other in on our lives & what's going on with our kids, jobs, etc. Talked politics & solved all the worlds problems. Made fun of each other (some things don't change even after you've grown up!) "Do to!", "Do Not!", "Do to!"

All of us, with the Mom!

All of us at Breakfast the next morning.
(Lft. to Rt. around the table) Danny, Judy, me, Carla, John,
my Mom, Marty, Debbie, John, Richard & Cindy.

Lessons Learned from Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons

I've shared before things I've learned in books. Like The Divine Secrets I've learned from the YaYa Sisterhood. And I thought I'd do it again. I've just finished reading Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by: Lorna Landvik. it's such a fun read. It's about 5 young mothers who all move into a couldusac in the 1960's and decide to start a Book Club! They go through many books, & decades of life together! It's probably not an appropriate book for my book club to read (we have a few teenagers who attend) but I still wanted to talk about it! After all I love books & I love to talk! :) So, here are some things I picked up from these Angry Houswives along the way:

Good Posture and an attitude let you get away with anything.
The type of person who got away with a lot simply because
she refused to ask permission for the privilege of being herself.

Life is like a bowl of spaghetti, it's still good even when it's all tangled up.

What I had come to love about book club was how in hearing so many opinions about the same book, your own opinion expanded, as if you'd read the book several times instead of just once.

There are outlaws inside all of us -
ready to break rules that need to be broken.
But society doesn't want its wives and mothers to be outlaws,
so most of the time we repress that voice that tells us to break rules.

I believe God can be found just as easily in a bowling alley as in a pew.

If you don't like where you're at, move.

What I don't like is when feminism tries to do away with what's feminine.

I was taught in Sunday School that "In the beginning there was light,"
but to me, it was always an incomplete sentence, which God should have known to amend:
in the beginning God created light . . . to read by.

If you think that it's true, that you can't judge a book by its cover,
then why do you choose to dress the way you do?

Bossy girls might be a pain, but they get whay they want.

Mothers united would be a powerful force.

Isn't that what friends are for,
hearing about the things that don't make you perfect
and loving you anyway?

By the end of the book, you feel like these are your friends, & you don't want to say goodbye to them. It was sad to have to put this book down. But, of course there are many fish in the sea! Or in this case, many books in the book store! :) My Husband snaped this picture of me, below, on his Iphone in Half Price Books looking for my next read! I picked up Best Friends Forever & Eat, Pray, Love! Which I thought were great selections, until my 18 year old son, Zach, showed me his selections; War and Peace & Schindler's List! (Can you tell who the smart one in the family is?!) Well, at least he got his love for books from his Mother! :)

Letter to My High School Self

Recently I was having a conversation with my son Zach, who just graduated from High School, and we were talking about how you spend so much time in High School worrying about what everyone thinks about you & trying to fit in, then when you graduate you may never really see those people again. And he said but Mom, with Facebook it's kind of changing that now. It's a lot easier for people to stay in touch with each other. And I realized how true that is. The world really is getting smaller!

People I knew in High School and haven't really seen since then, or at least since our 10 year reunion (I lived out of state for our 20th, and didn't go) have started to find each other on Facebook. And someone had the brilliant idea of inviting everyone to meet for lunch. So last week I went & met some people from High School for lunch. How much fun is that?! Some of these people lived in the same neighborhood as I did, and we went to Elementary School, Jr. High and High School together.

It's so funny, some people you see & even though it's been a lot of years, (28 years to be exact, but who's counting?) you know exactly who they are. They haven't changed at all. Others, look familiar, but you can't quite place them, until you get their name. Then it clicks in your brain. And some even after looking them up in the yearbook, look so different it's hard to believe they are the same person! And I wonder which of those scenarios I am for other people.

Most people told me I look just the same as I did in High School. (I think they were just being polite! I certainly don't feel like I look the same! Wish I did. I hate this aging thing, for myself as well as my kids!) Here's some of my High School pictures, you can judge for yourself. Please be kind. I do have the power to delete any of your comments. :)

Me in High School:

My Jr. Year of High School, 1981


My Senior Portrait
Maryvale High School class of 1982

As I was sitting there having lunch, I said to the girls at my table (and yes, I still consider us girls!) that I don't really know how people would remember me from High School. I was just kind of there, in the background. Believe it or not, I was actually kind of shy (I know hard to believe for those of you who know me now). And I said I wish I had the self confidence that I have now, back then. And that got me thinking.

I wish I could write a letter to myself and send it back to the High School me! I would tell myself to go for it! I mean what was I so afraid of anyway? I wanted to try out for the Pom line, but couldn't do the splits, so I never even tried. And why was I so afraid to talk to the boy I had a crush on? Look at me now, I've sustained a good marriage for almost 23 years now! Who cares if that one boy from High School didn't like me? And maybe he would have if I'd given him a chance! The me now would have done school plays, and joined different groups! I've found I have a love for writing by doing this Blog! I should have been writing for the school paper! But, instead I was just there. Got average grades. I didn't party! (not that the me now does either, I'm just saying!) I was a goody two shoes! I believed I was the last American virgin! (That is one thing I wouldn't change no matter how much I was teased!) I was in Dance in High School & I just loved it! Dance class that is, Ballet, Jazz, Modern, etc. (I didn't really go to school dances, but I should have!) We did Dance concerts, and those were some of my best High School memories I have. I did ditch class occasionally, some friends & I would go to the mall or just take a long lunch! I do still like to do those things! :) On Senior Ditch Day I went to Big Surf, a water park right here in the Arizona desert! High School was a lot of fun! I just think how much better it could have been if I had been braver?! If I had been the me I am now?!

So, as a Mother, I try to encourage my kids to get involved in school activities. Sports, Band, clubs, anything they might be interested in. It's worth it to try! I mean why not? Go for it! I do now! And I kind of like this person I've become, does it really matter if someone else might not? And I think you will find, that if you like you, others will to! (How cliche was that? I think I am getting old!)

Maryvale High School, class of 82 Lunch:

At lunch: (lft. side of table) Larry, me, Maria,
(rt. side of table) Laurie, Reine

Me with Judy, Katie across the table

Maryann & Me

Some of the Highschoolers, 28 years latter! :)
It really was a lot of fun, seeing them again.

So, if you could write a letter to yourself
back in High School,
what would you say?
And hopefully we'd only have to pay postage for back then, not today's!