Disney World: All Days! - All Star Sport Resort

I think this was the first time in all our family trips to Disney that we actually spent everyday at the pool (for at least a couple of hours.) IT WAS HOT! Last time we were at Disney World we stayed at All Star Music, but Grandpa Anderson decided this time we would stay at the sport one. It was a nice resort and you can't beat the price!

Disney World: Day 5 - Disney's Hollywood Studios

We spent our last day at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The special treat was my friend Elizabeth and her two daughters met us there! I was so excited to see Elizabeth and spend some quality time with her girls. It was a short day for us. Of course it was hot, but it was our last day before we left for our cruise, so we had packing and laundry to do.

Cohen and Kari went to visit Donald and Daisy and then we watch the March of the First Order.  It was really cool. The stormtroopers march in and have an "inspection of the guard." The sound of their boots on the pavement and the Star Wars music in the background created an amazing atmospher.

We then went to Toy Story Mania and visited with Buzz and Woody. It was a short but good day!

Disney World: Cohen meets Peter Pan and Tinker Bell!

Grandma Anderson decided that we should dress Cohen up while we were at Disney World. (I guess that't the thing to do) She wanted to do a Jedi costume, but I opted in for Peter Pan in hopes that it would be cooler (I'm talking temperature wise...remember, it was hot!). Cohen made one cute little Peter Pan. He wouldn't wear the hat, but at least we got him in everything else.

When Cohen met the "real" Peter Pan, he was totally nervous and not sure what was going on. I realized after that this was the first human character that we introduced him to and he just wasn't sure about him. It was kind of funny. Tinker Bell was a different story. She was so fantastic. She got on the floor with Cohen and talked to him. She even asked him about the treasure and took him to the key to see if they could pick it up. At the end of the visit she kissed him and left a lipstick kiss mark. We left it there for the rest of the trip.

Disney World: Day 4 - Magic Kingdom...with Kari and Grandma Anderson

On day 4 Grandma Anderson and Aunt Kari joined us! It was a fantastic day at the Magic Kingdom. Of course Cohen rode the carousel several times with Aunt Harmizzle. He sure loves that ride.

For dinner we went to Cinderella's Royal Table. It was such a treat! The Princesses were so nice, but I think Jasmine was my favorite. She was fantastic with Cohen! She asked him if he was a monkey like Aboo. When Cohen said yes, she asked him if he spoke monkey.  After Cohen gave her his best monkey impression, Jasmine declared that Cohen was fluent in monkey and therefore was in fact a monkey!

We dressed Cohen up as Peter pan also, but I will put those pictures in another post. Since this one is already getting so long! We had a fantastic day at the park! I can't wait till we can take Cohen there again!

Aunt Kari bought Cohen a big stuffed Pooh bear and Cohen was thrilled beyond reason! He insisted on carrying it everywhere.

Disney World: Day 3 - Animal Kingdom

On day three we went to the Animal Kingdom! Cohen loved the safari and seeing all the animals. We really didn't do much at the park. It was sooo hot! We grabbed an early dinner (We ate with Mickey, Donald, Daisy, and Goofy) and then headed back to the pool. We spent a lot of time at the pool this trip. I don't think I will ever travel to Florida again in September.

Cohen's Hippopotamus (or Hippo-the-Potamus)
When we were at Epcot, Cohen kept saying Hippo-the-Potamus when we were in front of the Finding Nemo Ride. I'm not really sure why he thought there was a hippo there, but he totally did. Well, when we went to Animal Kingdom, Cohen saw a real hippo and he was so excited. By then he was saying Hippopotamus instead of Hippo-the-Potamus.  When we walked into one of the gift shops on the way to dinner, they had a stuffed hippo and Cohen started cheering, "Hippopotamus!" He then grabbed it and started cuddling with it.  I'm not the type of parent that buys Cohen a lot of souvenirs when we travel, but I totally bought the hippo for him (this is literally the only thing I bought him at Disney World). He cuddled with it every night we were on our trip. It was just too cute.

Disney World: Day 2 - Magic Kingdom!

On day two we went to the Magic Kingdom. I was so excited to take Cohen here since he yells, "CASTLE!" every time we watch an intro to a Disney movie. I think this was Cohen's favorite park because of the train and all the characters that he got to see! We took him on a lot of rides, but the carousel was his favorite (Isn't that awesome? We travel all the way to Disney World and Cohen's favorite ride is one we could find at a mall!). Cohen and dad matched which was totally fun!

Disney World: Day 1 - Birthday at Epcot!

In September, Dad, Cohen and I headed to Disney World for a week before heading on a Cruise with the rest of the fam. It was HOT! Too hot for my liking, but we still had a good time. Cohen LOVE it! He was so excited to see all the characters. We didn't really do much at Epcot because we flew in that morning and it's not our favorite park. Cohen did enjoy riding the boat over to France :) and grabbing some sweet treats. We then headed back to the Reef Restaurant for my birthday dinner.  It was a nice day and a fun way to spend my birthday.

Friday Favorites: Favorite Events of 2009

Favorite events of 2009!

• Seeing Billy Elliot (Broadway Musical)- It's still one of my favorite shows of all time!
• Promotion to Senior Analyst!
• Elizabeth coming to play in NYC
• Seeing David Duchovny on the bus.
• Sarah coming to play times 2! - She came in April and November! Can't get enough Sarah!
• Going to Disney World with the family
• Hike with Selki
• Going to the Visa Signature Tony Awards Season Celebration
• Seeing Next to Normal (Broadway Musical)
• Seeing Rock of Ages
• Backpacking with Dad and Kari - I can't wait until next summer!
• Seeing The Norman Conquest (Broadway Play) - I would pay good money to see all three plays again
• Several Cooking with Ashley sessions - I hope there are many more next year.
• Dad, Kari, and Aunt Susan coming to play
• 25th Birthday! - I can't believe i'm so old!
• Going to Tavern on the Green for my Birthday
• Surprise Birthday party
• Going to a Yankee game and witnessing Jeter breaking the Yankee hits record
• Going to the US Open!
• Going Pumpkin picking with the girls
• Going to Utah to visit Elizabeth
• Hiking the Y

• Seeing A Steady Rain and Hamlet
• Spending Thanksgiving in Texas
• Going to the UT football game
• Meeting David :)
• Going home to play with the family for Christmas!

I hope 2010 is as memorable!

Disney World: Day Four - Academy Awards...Here I Come!

We went back to Disney's Hollywood Studios for our fourth day. The Parants and I headed over to the Toy Story Mania! ride. We had to wait forever and a day to get on, but it was sooo much fun.
We met up with Kari and had our pics taken with Woody and Buzz. I gave Woody a little kiss, because he's my fave. I then turned to Buzz, who had his hands on his hips and was looking the other way (totally put out that I didn't kiss him). I offered and he waved me off. I didn't mean to offend him, but I love Woody. Kari then went over and gave him a little kiss, and all was well.
The Studio Backlot Tour ride was the next stop. It had been closed for a few months and this was the first day it was open again. They start the tour off with a little special effects show. Basically, they are trying to reenact some of the water explosions from Pear Harbor. Since we were in the front of the line, we were asked if we wanted to participate. Well, Kari and I were all over that. Basically, we just had to stand there and scream while they blew water everywhere. Good times, right?
Mom recorded a little video of us. (that's why you can hear her laughing the whole time in the background). Since we were the "wacky deck hands" we were suppose to pretend to clean until the bombs started falling. Notice how I start to scream and then start to clean again. I'm hardcore. I don't care if the ship is going down, it will be clean! I blame my lame performance on poor direction. We were told to scream and run around. Not a lot to work with! I'm still glad we did it. It was fun.

We then headed over to the Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater. This was another on of my dads choices and it was my favorite of the trip. You sit in these little cars and watch old Si-Fi movies, while eating some good chow. It really felt like a drive in! The food was pretty good too.
Then we finished with some pics with some more characters.
I told the Incredibles kids that I wanted to do a power pose. They didn't even hesitate, and just struck a pose. I love these guys!