Disney Social Media Moms Conference Day 1
For a week in February, we decided to leave all the snow behind and head for Sunny Florida. Over the next few days, I am going to do a daily recap of our time at the conference. Let me just say that Disney went way out of their way to make this such a grand time for everyone and including all our families in on the fun.
Day 1:
We checked into the super fabulous Polynesian Resort where we were greeted with such superb Customer Service. As soon as we dropped off all our luggage, we wasted no time in heading straight to the parks. I do have to say this was our first time staying on-site and it was nice to just park your car and take the Monorail or the Bus to all the parks.
Our first park we headed to was the Animal Kingdom. I will go ahead and tell you my youngest daughter L is not a fan of all the Disney characters. She is very afraid of people dressed up and wants no part in seeing them, so we made the decision to let her go see the Animals first!
As soon as we walked in, we were immediately greeted with the animals. L was loving this Disney park. She is a huge animal lover and we just had to stop and see all the animals.
Unfortunately, since we had never been to Animal Kingdom, we didn’t realize Safari was the place to see many more animals, so we made a trip back to Animal Kingdom on our last day. (More to come about the Safari on the last day recap)
As I was hanging out with L, hubby would make sure to make all the stops for the Greet and Meet Characters with M. Just a note of advice… Make sure to let your little one have an autograph book with them in the parks (you can even just purchase a small notebook for them) so they can have all the Characters autograph. M was loving all the autographs with each of the characters.
L was over the moon happy with just having her Lil Tinkerbell Baby to carry in her arms throughout the park.
After spending all day at Animal Kingdom, we headed back for a night of fun at ESPN Worldwide of Sports.
This venue was huge and so awesome to be able to take in the sights while no one was there 
.
As the moms were attending a Press Conference, all the families were out on the field having a great time partaking in all the sports events.
Back in the Press Conference, the Social Media Moms, were getting a look into all the awesome upcomings Disney is bringing forth for everyone. One of the new adventures is the Disney Dream Cruise that is coming in 2011. I knew I wanted to take a Disney Cruise before, but now I really WANT to make it happen for my family after seeing all they are going to offer for families.
Also, one of the key features of the Disney Cruise is the AquaDuck water coaster. Just watch and see how cool this new water coaster is:
And yet another great feature coming back is the Disney Electrical Parade in Magic Kingdom this Summer. We were able to experience the Electrical Parade when we were at Disney this past Christmas. It was so neat and the girls were just in awe during the whole parade seeing all the floats lit up and the people in the parade all lit up. Definitely a must see when you are at the parks. Here are some photos from our time at Christmas.
After the Press Conference, we all headed to another venue at the ESPN Worldwide of Sports to have dinner and let the kids enjoy a dance party with all the beloved Characters. L was just fine sitting with her mommy the whole time, but M really got up on stage and had the time of her life dancing her little heart out. They even were entertained by the High School Musical Cast.
It really was an awesome way to end the evening. Big KUDOS to ESPN Worldwide of Sports for hosting us and show what true family entertainment is all about!
PS: Keeping it real here at One Moms World. I was apart of the Disney Social Media Moms Conference in which we did get reduced hotel and was given tickets as well some dinners provided. They in no way had us post about our time during the Conference. I wanted to from my own mind and heart and will be expressing my opinions about Disney over the course of this week .
Tribute To My Grandma Nellie Houck
I have spent day and night of the last week with my wonderful Grandma. I am going to miss her so much. It has been so hard to see her struggle each and everyday but I am so thankful I had each and every day with her. Her last words to me was “I Love You Jennifer” and I will treasure that always. Her last night here on Earth was just her and I in the room. She was so peaceful and I am so happy we had that one on one time. I am speaking at her funeral today and wanted to share with you what I will be reading. It’s going to be hard the days to come but I am just praying for God’s strength to get me through these days! Thank you all so much for the kind words, prayers, messages and phone calls. It really has helped me so much.
Nellie Houck
July 30, 1913 – February 20, 2010
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength” from Deuteronomy 6:5 NIV.
That bible verse reminds me of my Grandmother for sure! She just loved life and all the people that were involved in her life. Inspiring… Motivating… Hero! Those three words are just some of the adjectives that I would use to describe my wonderful Grandma.
It is no secret that my 96 year old grandmother was my best buddy. I am her youngest grandchild and so you know how that goes… the youngest is the baby 
. She spoiled me in so many ways with all the baby dolls she would buy me or all the clothes she would buy me. It didn’t matter if it was blue plaids with yellow stripes going down the sleeves, she wanted me to wear them and I would do so with a smile! If mom and dad would jump on me, all I had to do was call Grandma. She would say now Bill and Jean, Jennifer is too cute to do that! I had her wrapped around my finger and she knew she was the apple of my eye.
I spent my summers as a little girl at her house way up in the country with no stores very near. I didn’t care, because I was with my grandma. We had flowers to water, vegetables to pick, long walks to make across the old wooden bridge and cold watermelon to get out of the cold creek behind her old mountain house to have for a summer snack. I would raise my head in the mornings and always hit the ceiling because I was jumping out of bed so fast since the chocolate gravy aroma was filling the air. There is no doubt she knew how to make some mean chocolate gravy.
Grandma and Grandpa decided to trade the country roads for the big city roads of Lenoir, NC. Once they got settled in, most Friday nights you would see me having sleepovers with Grandma. She always said she loved me having the sleepovers but she didn’t love all my kicking her . Hey, I was just trying to let her know that I loved her with all my love taps! I would wake-up to the never-ending pancakes each Saturday morning. My cousin Shana can vouch for this one as she came up and had a sleepover with me at Grandma’s. She kept bringing out the pancakes and it was all Shana and I could do was to eat them. At this point, I was wishing there was a doggie in the house to help us eat them because as we all know there was no telling Grandma you did not want anything to eat. You could say no 20 times, but she was not taking no for an answer. So you just kept on eating right? When I was in high school and would get a break for lunch before I headed to work, I would go to Grandma’s every day. She would have the biggest lunch for me prepared each time. Food and Grandma went hand in hand for sure. The thing is though, the food was going straight to my hips and Grandma was not shy letting me know that I was getting fat. Over the years she would say Jennifer you are getting way too big and at one time asked if I was pregnant because my belly was so big. That is what I loved about Grandma, she would tell you like it was. If she thought you were fat, she would tell you, if she hated how your hair was cut, she would tell you, if she thought your clothes didn’t look right on you, she would tell you. That was just Grandma. She was blunt, but she was still my best buddy.
With all her bluntness was still very much jokiness. She could make one laugh so much and there would be so many times the things she would say, that would just make you want to roll in the floor and laugh. She would call my work and she knew my extension but every time she would get the numbers transpired and end up calling the President of our company. At times to, she would end up back at the operator and just carry on conversations with both of them. Luckily I was really good friends with the operator and she knew every time that it was my Grandma, and would just go right along with the conversation and eventually Grandma would get to my extension. She would say Jennifer, I don’t know who I have been talking to but they were the nicest people. It didn’t matter who you were, she was going to do her some talking. For example, we would be in a grocery aisle and she would just walk up to some random person and ask them about the nutrition facts on the back of the can or ask them if they ever had tried that particular food. She never met a stranger that is for sure.
I have told these little stories to make you smile and remember Grandma, but there is one thing everyone knew for sure. Grandma, was a huge believer in the word of God. Growing up she would read me to me from the Bible and the Guideposts magazine. Just last month I started my own subscription to the Guideposts and going to pass that tradition on to my girls. She was a big believer in prayer too. I have definitely learned from her that prayer works and God has a plan for all of us. We need to make sure we follow his lead and stay on his path he has for our life. Grandma would not want it any other way.
I am going to leave you today with a little poem that I have written just for my Grandma Nellie Houck.
G is for the greatness you gave to me all through my life.
R is for all the rejoicing you would give me with every milestone that I would hit in life.
A is for amazing me so much.
N is for the noteworthy Grandma you were always to me.
D is for the determination you had each and every day.
M is for the magnificent legacy that you left behind and I will carry with me each day.
A is for the angel that I now have always looking after me!
I love you Grandma! You are my hero!
No tags for this post.The Winter Is Sure Giving Us A Run
For our money that is…
Now you see, I do live in the mountains and yes we are use to the snow and cold BUT, there is usually a little bit of a break in between storms for us to re-cooperate. Since Dec. 17th,
- I have seen my grass for about a total of 4 days.
- The girls have maybe went a total of four FULL days of school (meaning no delays or snow cancellations).
- We lost power for 4 days.
- We have seen more ice that we ever care to!
- We have came up with so many creative ways to sled that you would be amazed
It is a winter for the history books for sure. I am itching for the sun so I can go out and run and get more fit. This winter has really done me in and I am so just wanting to get out and run, run and did I say run?
Anyways… I thought I would share some videos of our little sledding runs and some pictures to make you smile from our own little version of North Pole!
First Glance at North Pole, NC
The Girls Taking a Sled Run
M Having Fun with the Circular Sled
Mommy and L Taking a Sled Run
Snow Gals
The Girls SnowWoman
M Loves to Make Snow Angels
The Girls Love to Crash the Sled
The Girls LOVE to Sled
The Snow Is Here So We Should Enjoy It I Guess
Happy Winter Everyone!!
No tags for this post.The Story of the ZING ZANG ZOOM
The snow storm that took over NC this past weekend was determined to make us miss my girls first circus ever. Guess what? We were one up on the weather. We changed our tickets from the Saturday show to the Thursday show. I’m so glad we did because I heard that lots of people couldn’t make the weekend shows but luckily Ticketmaster was doing refunds due to the snow storm.
To see the girls faces during the show as just amazing! The show lasted a little over 2 hours, but the girls did not complain at all. They are at the ages of 5 and 7. Since due to the weather my step-daughter was not with us, we took my little cousins age 9 and 11 (boys). They were equally amazed as well.
They included the family in on lots of events during the show. Seeing the magic being performed and then watching the amazed looks on the children faces just couldn’t be beat.
I am always in awe of the acrobats and so I just knew my girls would be as well. Much to my surprise the boys couldn’t stop watching either. How they are so flexible and strong will always be a wonder of mine? They have so much faith on each other to which I’m sure they have a huge bond with one another. Just seeing them do the flips, balances, jumps and climbs was just awesome.
I will have to say, that I have never seen a real life cannon ball and guess what… I was finally able to see one!!! I think I was jumping up and down as much as my girls were. My youngest daughter just couldn’t quite figure out why the women were getting into these tubes and her mouth just dropped open when they shot across the stage. Amazing!
Oh the animals were a HUGE HIT! All the kids were on the edge of their seats during the whole animal scenes. I was so cracking up at the elephants… they can sit their big booty on these little stools and never miss a beat. Too cool! Also how they would all line up and swing each other’s tales to hold on to each other. So cool!
I was a little anxious for the tigers when it was time for their scene. They never skipped a beat with the trainer though and all did their tricks perfect. Amazing!
At the end was a huge parade and all the kids joined in and clapped their little hearts out!
It was such a great experience for the whole family. My hubby and I were just into the show as much as the kids were. We definitely recommend this for a family outing
Check to see when the ZING ZANG ZOOM is coming to your area and use this special offer to get your tickets really cheap .
A SPECIAL OFFER FOR YOU!
Purchase
a
4‐pack
of
tickets
for
only
$44
for
weekday
shows,
or
receive
$4
off
weekend
tickets
by
logging
on to
www.ticketmaster.com
and
entering
the
coupon
code:
MOM.
Also, be sure to get to the arena early to check out the All Access Preshow.
Step onto the arena floor and into The Greatest Show On Earth® at the All Access Pre-show! Come an hour before show time to join Clown College® and learn how to be a circus clown.
10 Reasons You Can’t Miss the All Access Pre-show!
1) An amazing elephant paints right before your eyes.
2) Learn juggling, makeup and fun with the world famous Clown Alley.
3) See a one-of-a-kind special Ringling Bros®motorcycle as built by Orange County Choppers.
4) Meet the performers up close and get autographs.
5) Witness Klose’s Performing Canines jump through obstacles and hoops.
6) Be amazed as Zingmaster Alex teaches magic to audience members.
7) See performers jump rope and do tricks on the low wire.
Watch the contortions and table juggling of the Chinese Qi Qi Har Troupe.
9) Try on actual clothes used in The Greatest Show On Earth.
10) It’s FREE with your ticket, so get in on the fun!
What age was your children when they first went to the circus?
Full Disclosure: Our family was provided these tickets in exchange for this complete review. This review comes from my heart and the complimentary tickets did not persuade my views at all!
No tags for this post.What Is In a Grandparent Name
My beautiful girls call my mom an unique name. I’m not so sure if she ever thought she would be called this when she was a grandparent, but it warms my heart that my girls came up with this ever so cute name on their own. My girls call my mom Yay-Yay! Yes… you heard me right . Now, you see how this name came about is very interesting. When M was about 6 months old, my mom would call M on the phone and go yayayayayayayayay over and over to her on the phone. She did this until M was well over a year old because M would just crack up and do the cutest little baby laugh. Mom was over at our house one day and M out of the blue looked at my mom and said plain as day Yay-Yay. Her little mind put two and two together that she was the woman that always did Yay-Yay to her so that must be her name right? Ever since that day, my mom has been known as Yay-Yay to the girls. When L was born and old enough to talk, she naturally just started calling mom Yay-Yay as well. Is that not just the cutest story?
Now let’s just say if you gather a group of young kids today and ask them what they call their grandparents…. you are going to get a different answer from each one. You’re bound to encounter the run-of-the-mill Grandmas and Grandpas, but things really start getting interesting once the Gramies, Lulus, Gagas and Boo-boos start popping up. Where did all these names come from? Are the grandparents planting them? Is it just a matter of young kids butchering the annunciations? Regardless of origin, the nicknaming of grandparents has taken on a life of its own, and as a result BabyCenter has published the top 10 most popular names from grandparents:
Popular Grandmother Names:
Grandma
Nana
Grammy
Granny
Mimi
Gram
Nanny
Oma
Mamaw
Gran
Popular Grandfather Names:
Grandpa
Papa
Granddad
Gramps
Pop-Pop
Poppy
Papaw
Pop
Opa
Pappy
In addition to the top ten, BabyCenter also collected dozens of other sweet, fun and downright odd names while compiling the list that can be found here.
What does your kids call their grandparents? I would love to see if it falls into the top ten from above or is unique to your family .
Inspiring Motivating Hero
Those three words are just some of the adjectives that I would use to describe my wonderful Grandma. She is a wonderful 96 years old and just loves life and all the people that are involved in her life.
She is going through a rough patch right now and it really breaks my heart. I worry about her all the time. My grandma and I are super close and always have been. I love that I can still pick up the phone any time and say hello to her and carry on a full conversation. Sometimes just hearing her speak is what motivates me to have a better day.
She is such a sweetheart and is always worrying about me. She doesn’t like me traveling on airplanes and she just told me yesterday that she worries herself so much until I get back home. She is such a gem. She is a believer in our almighty Christ and is always praying for everyone. That warms my heart so much to know she has me in her prayers.
Like I said she motivates me! She stayed on me and stayed on me to go back and finish my degree in college. I made that step last year and will soon be done with my degree this year. I wanted to do it for her as much as I wanted to do it for me. She loves to motivate us to do better all the time.
The above picture was taken at this past Christmas celebration. She was worrying herself so much over my gift. Jennifer she would say “I just wasn’t able to get to store and get anything, it is worrying me so much that I do not have you anything.” I told her… Grandma please do not worry. You just being here celebrating with us for Christmas is the best gift I could ever wish for. She got a smile on her face and turned to her freezer where she whipped out a loaf of banana bread. Growing up, she has always given me banana bread loaves and oh my goodness does it make me smile. Her loaves are so delicious and I always keep them all to myself to eat when she gives them to me.
Even at 96 years old she is still warming my heart with the things she says and the banana bread that she makes sure I have all throughout the year.
It has been on my heart and mind lately since she has had some health problems, that I am going to be faced one day that she is going to cross those pearly gates and be with our wonderful Lord Jesus Christ forever. It just brings me to tears. Yes, I am selfish and always want her hear with me, my girls, my family! I want to keep those thoughts in the back of my mind and just enjoy her each and everyday I can. She inspires me, She motivates me, She is my HERO!
I love you Grandma…always and forever, Your Youngest Grandchild – Jennifer
We had a real rarity too this Christmas…. we have 6 generations in our family now. I just love our Houck Family and just will always treasure this picture!
6 Generations in the Houck Family
Circus is Coming to Town Giveaway
Come experience the all-new Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey
presents ZING ZANG ZOOM
playing Time Warner Cable Arena with your family!
A SPECIAL OFFER FOR YOU!
Purchase
a
4‐pack
of
tickets
for
only
$44
for
weekday
shows,
or
receive
$4
off
weekend
tickets
by
logging
on to
www.ticketmaster.com
and
entering
the
coupon
code:
MOM.
Charlotte, NC Show Dates:
Wednesday January 27: 7:00pm
Thursday January 28: 7:00pm
Friday January 29: 10:30am, 7:00pm
Saturday January 30: 11:00am, 3:00pm, 7:00pm
Sunday, January 31: 11:00am, 3:00pm, 7:00pm
Be sure to get to the arena early to check out the All Access Preshow.
Step onto the arena floor and into The Greatest Show On Earth® at the All Access Pre-show! Come an hour before show time to join Clown College® and learn how to be a circus clown.
10 Reasons You Can’t Miss the All Access Pre-show!
1) An amazing elephant paints right before your eyes.
2) Learn juggling, makeup and fun with the world famous Clown Alley.
3) See a one-of-a-kind special Ringling Bros®motorcycle as built by Orange County Choppers.
4) Meet the performers up close and get autographs.
5) Witness Klose’s Performing Canines jump through obstacles and hoops.
6) Be amazed as Zingmaster Alex teaches magic to audience members.
7) See performers jump rope and do tricks on the low wire.
Watch the contortions and table juggling of the Chinese Qi Qi Har Troupe.
9) Try on actual clothes used in The Greatest Show On Earth.
10) It’s FREE with your ticket, so get in on the fun!
You can win a family four pack for your family opening night. Just leave me a comment below that you would like to win and I will pick a random winner on January 21st at 12:00pm EST. Good Luck!
Its Been 2 Years Baby
January 2008
December 2009
Together 8 years… Married for 2 Years! Happy Anniversary to the love of my life Scott .
It all started here on the blog and then a year later I blogged about how could we honestly make it through that first year? Now, here we are January 2010 and I have to say the 2nd year of marriage ROCKED. We had the best year.
Random Thoughts of 2 Years of Marriage
We are much cuter since we are carrying around less pounds now
We still had our tiffs, but we didn’t let it stop us from still showing our love for each other
He is really my best friend!
We can so tell when we are pushing each other’s buttons, and will give each other that smirk
He has made me into a huge coffee drinker
He will have coffee waiting for me in the mornings!
He is such a great hands on daddy that loves taking the girls to Chick-Fil-A
He is so humorous and sometimes he can be over the top but I still love him
He hates talking on the phone!
He loves Fox News
He hates when I let the gas get to right on empty
He loves to do laundry (haha or maybe he just wants clean clothes to wear!)
He is my biggest fan with my work
He builds my self-esteem up so much since I don’t think I’m all that
He loves God and shares his faith openly!
He loves to sneak up behind me and give me the biggest hug (heart melts)
He loves to drive (thank goodness since I love to travel)
He loves to surprise me with my special foods!
He LOVES my cooking
But Most Important: He LOVES me and our girls!
Happy Anniversary Scott. What, Where and How will our 3rd year of marriage will bring us? I for one, cannot wait to find out.
I love you Honey Bunny (he so hates me calling him that). Here’s to an awesome year :::cheers:::
No tags for this post.Ocean Isle Inn Great Winter Vacation
What do you do when you have been experiencing a month of snow, ice and zero temperatures? You pack up and head to the sun and the beach! We are down here for the Mom Bloggers 2010 Ocean Isle Inn weekend. It has been amazing and a welcome break from all the snow and ice. The indoor pool and hot tub is just what the dr ordered to cure the winter blues. The girls are having an absolute blast of getting the chance to swim in January.
Ocean Isle Inn earned the Gold Star of Excellence Award from the Myrtle Beach Area Hospitality Association. I can assure that the hospitality is so great. Lee and his staff really know how to treat their guests. Always asking if there is anything they can do for you, helping with directions to area restaurants and offering suggestions for family activities to do in the area.
Over the next couple days, I am going to be showcasing some of the restaurants and activities we were able to do while we were here in the middle of winter. This has been such a great time and if you would like the opportunity to join in the fun, make sure you friend Ocean Isle Inn on Facebook Fan Page. They are giving away an awesome spa package giveaway.
Full Disclosure: Ocean Isle Inn has given me a paid stay for this weekend, but it does not reflect my thoughts at all. My feelings and recommendations come from my heart as always!
No tags for this post.Cottonelle Debate
Are you team under or team over?
I am proud:
Cottonelle is getting to the bottom of a great debate raging across America. Cottonelle wants to know: how do you roll? Over or under? Vote for your preferred way to roll at CottonelleRollPoll.com.
Leave me a comment below and join in the debate to say if your family is Team Under or Team Over!
By leaving a comment on your post they will be entered to win 1 of 10 Cottonelle gift baskets randomly chosen on January 29, 2010 from all entries.
Full Disclosure: I am entering a contest for a month’s worth of Cottonelle toilet paper as a member of the Mom Bloggers Club.
No tags for this post.
