Cupcakes, Gowns and Kisses - 70/365

Today was Nana's play day. Reagan is always so excited to go over there.

They were just going to spend the day playing around the house. Reagan requested the cupcake game, of course! They were getting into full swing when Raymond called and said he had flat tire. He usually goes home to let Dexter out at lunch and when he went out, he discovered his tire was flat. He was going to get that taken care of during lunch, so he asked Nana and Reagan to go let him out. Reagan always loves to see Dexter, so she was thrilled. Dexter loves her, too. He always showers her with kisses!

This evening, they went over to Tippy. They ended up taking the cupcake game over there. She was thrilled. She even got to see her boyfriend, John.

Nana also brought Reagan over her new Frozen Fever gowns she ordered her. They are SUPER adorable! I love the Springtime look. She couldn't wait to put them on!

I had a boring day of chores and catching up on blogs. Jim said he was slammed at work with tax season coming up. Overall a good day though.

Reagan and Dexter

 Little fashionista

 Cupcake game!

Gowns

 

 

 

Return to TV & Indoor Porch Party - 252/365

Today, Jim returned to television!

He and two other Boardman Rotarians went to Boardman High School this morning, to do an interview about the Oktoberfestival for the student's television station. They had to be there at 8:30 and it was during the students first period class. 

Jim said he really enjoyed being back among the television equipment and that it was a fun experience for them. 

This evening, we wanted to try to have one more porch party with Ron and Rachel. It was going to be around 80, so I was hoping to put up the pool. It was looking kinda unsettled all day, so I kept holding off. Turns out that was a good move because as soon as Ron and Rachel pulled in, it started raining. Oh well. We just moved our party indoors and still had a fun time. 

Parker and Sharon made cupcakes for our party. They were delicious and the kids LOVED them! It was so funny watching them dive in! 

The first picture is Jim's badge from his morning at the school.

 Next, the kiddos enjoying their cupcakes. 

9/11 Memorial & NYC - 190/365

It was our second day in NYC!

We were going to head downtown today to see the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.

What an amazing job they did with it. We wandered around for a couple hours. It brought back every emotion of that day and then some. It was so sad seeing all the artifacts they pulled from the rubble and reading the stories of the people they belonged to.

They had a couple of the fire trucks that were the first responders. To see them crushed and burnt was unbelievable. It was so sad, but so amazing. I would love to go back sometime.

After the museum, we were starving, so we wandered around until we found somewhere to eat. We ended up at this amazing Italian place in Tribeca called Acappella.

It was DELICIOUS! They even made Reagan up some buttered noodles.

Our waiters were wonderful and so sweet to us. They chatted, brought us extra bread and even gave us a grappa on the house. YUM!

While at lunch, Reagan wanted to call daddy, so she had an adorable conversation. It was so cute!

After lunch, we wanted to walk over to the Georgetown Cupcake shop in SoHo. Jim and I are BIG fans of the show and cupcakes. We even got a big box of cupcakes to bring home for Jimmy!

He'll be thrilled!

Once we were back uptown, we decided to try this brand new ice bar. Reagan could go in since it was before five. She wasn't very amused with it. She didn't cry or anything, just kept complaining she was cold. I tried to play off that Elsa made the bar, but that didn't work either. Nana, Mary Jane and I loved it though. Everything in there was ice. The bar, the seats, the tables, and the glasses! It was so COOL! No pun intended! LOL! We were so glad we went.

Tonight, we went to see Allie dance again and then grabbed some Mister Softee. It is seriously some of the best ice cream. Yum!

Jimmy was bad at taking home pictures today. He said he had a good day at work and that he and Brinkley went for another walk. That's about it!

Fire truck at 9/11 memorial

 The girls at the memorial

 Chatting with daddy at lunch

 CUPCAKES

 At the ice bar

 Mister Softee

 

Magic Kingdom - 320/365

It was our last full day of our trip, bummer. We always get so sad to leave. 

We slept in a bit, since we were out late the night before. When we got up, Jim took Reagan out to the pool for a little bit, while I spent some time packing us up. Reagan and Jim had a great time in the pool! She was really loving the whole Nemo theme. 

Once we were all ready to hit the park, we went over to the Contemporary to have lunch at the Contempo Cafe. That's a great little quick service place and Reagan loves watching the monorails zoom through the building. We sampled two more cupcakes, too! We got the Root Beer and Red Velvet. Jim and I both, really liked the root beer one, but it was a little odd, too! It's not something you expect for a cupcake. The red velvet was delicious! 

Once we were done, we were off to the Magic Kingdom. It was raining a little bit again, but nothing where you felt you needed a poncho. Just a light sprinkle that actually felt kinda good! We got in and hit just about everything! We were bound and determined to suck up everything we could. We did, PhilharMagic, Ariel, Winnie the Pooh, Dumbo, and Barnstormer. 

We also stopped at the new Pete's Silly Sideshow in Storybook Circus for the Minnie, Daisy, Donald and Goofy meet and greet. Their outfits back there are just amazing. They are all in fortune telling theme except for Goofy. He's got some pilot gear on. 

Next, we walked over to Tomorrowland to do Space Mountain and Buzz Lightyear. I am horrible at Buzz, I always lose by THOUSANDS! Jim is amazing at it! He always has an awesome score.

We had gotten fast passes for the new talking Mickey. Jim and Reagan, visited with him the other night, but I hadn't had a chance to see him yet. Wow, is it weird to walk in there and have him talk to you. Mickey asked Reagan if she's ever flown like Peter Pan, put his arms out and "flew" around the room. She did exactly as he did and flew around, too! It was hilarious! She loved it! 

Next, we went to the new Princess meet and greet where the old Snow White ride used to be. They have two lines, with two princesses in each. We chose the Snow White and Rapunzel line. Reagan happened to have a Snow White dress and necklace on. Boy, was Snow White impressed. They talked for quite a few minutes. It was adorable. Snow White kept holding up her necklace and just smiling. Reagan was so happy! I actually tried to take Mr. Fuzzy from Reagan for pictures, so we could see her dress. She yanked him back out of my hands and said, "NO! Snow White wants to meet Mr. Fuzzy!" It was such a hoot!

After that we went to Pecos Bill's Cafe to have some dinner. The Magic Kingdom does not do food well. It's always a line and always LONG! Poor Jim was in line for a little over a 1/2 hour for our dinner. Reagan and I were lucky enough to just hang out at the table coloring and stuff. The food ended up being pretty good, though! 

After that, we went over to Adventureland to ride a few things. We did the "Jingle Cruise" again and Pirates. We did the Magic Carpets twice, and, were lucky enough to see Wishes again from up there. That's three times we got to see the fireworks from a ride. 

After that, we stopped for a Dole Whip. You really can't visit Disney and not get a Dole Whip. It's criminal! LOL! 

We were now going to head back over toward Fantasyland. We hit Haunted Mansion on the way. Next, we did, It's a Small World and Peter Pan. It was 10:30 by this time. I wanted to head over to the Emporium, to browse around for a little bit, so Jim and Reagan went to ride a few things. They did Ariel and It's a Small World again. They had fun, and I found a few treasures at the store. Reagan kept telling Jim she wanted to ride more rides. When he told her the park had finally closed and we couldn't ride any more rides, she closed her eyes and fell right to sleep. It was amazing! She was OUT! 

We always get so sad walking out of the parks, especially now that we have her. Watching the amazement and wonder in her eyes is something we will never forget. We just wish we could freeze this age. She is so adorable and just loves it all! We had an amazing trip!  

The photo of the day is Reagan and her new best friend, Snow White.

 Next, Reagan and Mickey finishing up their "flying" session.

Finally, our yummy root beer cupcake....

 

Happy Halloween! - 304/365

Happy Halloween! 

We were going to have a busy day today! 

Reagan and I started with a trip to the grocery store. We needed a few things, and I had promised her we would bake "ghost" cupcakes for our pizza party that night. I still needed all those supplies, too!

When we got back, Reagan and I were going to work on our final pumpkin. Nana had found this really cool Cinderella set, that had a stencil, sound maker and sensor. You carve the pumpkin. Then, put this sensor down inside, when you walk past the pumpkin, it talks in Cinderella's voice. Reagan was super excited and couldn't wait for it to be done. 

The carving went really well with my new knives! I was done in no time. Cinderella's eyes were a little tricky, but it still came out pretty good. 

When it got to be lunch time, we went to meet Nana and Mary Jane at Cheddar's for a girl's lunch. We had a fun time! We all got sandwiches. Nana and MJ got Philly Cheese Steaks. They were huge and looked delicious! 

 After lunch, they went visiting some friends, while Reagan and I went home to bake our cupcakes. Reagan was the best little mixer! Her favorite part was scraping the side of the bowl with the spatula. And of course, licking the beaters! LOL! She kept going, "MMMMMMM!" It was adorable! 

This evening, was finally trick or treat. The weather was horrible. It was raining and windy and it just kept getting worse. 

On a brighter note, every year since Reagan came along, the grandparents stop over to see her in her costume. Jim's mom and dad stopped over first. Greg came in with zombie teeth and black lips. Reagan just kept staring, not quite sure what to make of it. It took her a good 20 minutes to warm up to him. It was so funny! They stayed a little bit, then headed home to pass out their own candy. 

Papa, Nana and Mary Jane came in soon after with the pizza for our party! We have made it a tradition to have a pizza party Halloween night, before we head out for trick or treat. It's fun to sit with Reagan in her costume and chit chat! 

Parker and Ron were our first customers and they were soaked. Poor guys. They were in good spirits though! It was so sad to see all the kids coming to the door just drenched and cold. 

Finally, we decided it was our turn to brave the rain and set off to a few houses. We gave Reagan her little Dora umbrella and away we went. She wasn't bothered by the rain at all. She just had a good time. We only ended up going to four or five houses, but she had fun. 

When we got back, we dried off a bit, then drove up to Ron and Rachel's to visit them for a few minutes. We got to see Milana and chat with Ron Sr. and Sharon for a few minutes. Sharon made Reagan an adorable little treat bag. It was so sweet.

 When we got back home, Nana, MJ, Reagan and I set off to visit JoAnn for a few minutes. JoAnn always likes to see Reagan in her costume and give her a few treats. Her and Bobby got the biggest kick out of the Watermelon Fairy costume! 

Next up, it was off to Ray and Jenny's! They were so sweet, they had a little stuffed animal for Reagan and some Halloween stickers. We hung out over there for a little bit and chatted. They even had some "treats" for the adults! We got Miller Lites! Cheers! 

 Despite the weather, we had a really nice Halloween with our baby girl. It's hard to believe this was her third one already! 

The photo of the day is Reagan setting out in the rain for Trick or Treat.

 Next, is my cupcake baker and our ghost cupcakes. They HAD to have "frinkles", too! 

Finally, our talking Cinderella pumpkin...

 

Photoshop Seminar - 203/365

I was headed to a Photoshop seminar in Cleveland today! Exciting!

 But, not before we realized our air conditioning was broken, ay, yi, yi. We actually thought it was a little stuffy last night. Jim finally discovered it was broken around 1AM. 

He called Clayton Heating and Cooling first thing this morning and they came right out. We were their second stop! They were here for 2 hours, and $230 later, we're back in business. We were relieved that it wasn't anything too serious. We can live with a $200 repair. 

Reagan was going to spend the day with Nana, while Jim was working and I was in Cleveland. 

 I left the house at eight, and got downtown and situated at the Renaissance by 9:30. 

 I am a member of Kelby Training online, so I was excited to finally be at one of the live seminars. They are the best in the business. 

The seminar itself was held in the Grand Ballroom and it was packed! They had tables throughout the whole room and almost every seat was taken. I ended up sitting in the middle of the very last row. They had two huge monitors going the whole time.

They gave us an extremely detailed book of everything they covered, so you didn't even need to take notes. You could just sit back and let it soak in. We learned everything from how to touch up photos, to how to combine two images to make them look like one. It was fascinating and I learned a TON! Today, I also became a member of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals. Too exciting! I can't wait to keep learning! 

Overall, the program was great and I look forward to attending another seminar in the future. 

 After the seminar and before I headed home, I had to make a pit stop at Colossal Cupcake. Raymond and Jennifer visited there a couple weeks ago when they stayed in Cleveland, and it sounded wonderful. They have cupcakes bigger than your fist! It really was something else! I got Jim and I  salted caramel and cookie monster. They were yummy!

I got home around 7:00 and was able to spend some time with my little girl before bedtime. 

I was happy! 

The photo of the day is the seminar...

And next is our Colossal Cupcakes...

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