Hello Kitty Flights courtesy of EVA Air

Did you know that EVA Air offers a Hello Kitty flight?

You can fly Hello Kitty three times a week from Chicago to Taipei or LAX to Taipei.  Here’s all that’s included:

1. Themed pink Hello Kitty ticket counters
2. Hello Kitty boarding passes
3. According to this website, it also includes Hello Kitty pillows, utensils, food, soap, crew uniforms, and vomit bags.
4. The crew serves pink champagne and there are even Hello Kitty coffee and drink stirrers.
5. The melons, cheese and pasta of a kids’ meal are all shaped like Hello Kitty
6. Children get to select from a variety of toys on board

Pretty cool, huh?

 

The Happiest Place on Earth…with a Toddler?

We live somewhat close to Disneyworld.  Not close enough to go there every week, but we’re within 3 hours of it.  We’ve been debating about what the best age would be to take our little one for the first time.  At first we thought we wouldn’t take her until she could remember it later on, and for that, we thought 3 would be a good age.  But then we realized we really *missed* going ourselves and Disney starts charging a separate ticket price once they turn 3.  So here we are, at around 23 months old, getting ready to go.

Before we started researching the vacation, we settled on a few ground rules:

1. Daddy gets to take her on it’s a small world for the first time.  He’s done that with each of his other kids and loves their reaction.  Mama and the rest of the party can sit in another boat, but this is daddy’s ride.
2. We need to stay in a hotel on Disney property, because if little one has a meltdown right around naptime, one of us can make a quick exit and get to a nice dark cool hotel room relatively quickly, get a 2-hour nap in, and then meet the rest of the party later on.
3. Little one likes to run, so she’s going to be on a leash.  That’s all there is to it. She likes wearing this one:

Once I committed the time to research and plan the trip (let’s face it; I’m the planner in this relationship), I got more excited.  I booked us at one of the pricier resort hotels because I wanted to enjoy my stay.  And it has a character breakfast on property.  I’m also hoping maybe we can see the fireworks from there.  It’s just a monorail ride to Magic Kingdom!

We got our custom-color magic bands in the mail last week and I just finished booking the FastPasses for each day of our 4-day trip.  We’ll do one park each day, and I lucked out and was able to FastPass some of our favorite rides as well as a few new ones we haven’t tried yet.  A FastPass is a timed ticket (electronically linked to your wristband) that lets you skip the line and show up at the FastPass entrance at the time window you are assigned.  You are only allowed to have 3 per day open at a time, and it is free (unlike Universal Studios).  Once you use one, you can immediately go online or to a kiosk and book another one, though. Also, they can’t overlap in time windows.  If you book a Disney resort hotel, you can schedule your FastPasses online as early as 60 days before your trip.  Otherwise, you can book as early as 30 days prior.

I am a real baby when it comes to rides.  I don’t do rollercoasters — even little kid ones.  I found out that no matter how new a ride is, somebody is sure to have videoed their “POV” of it and posted it on YouTube.  I watched the new Avatar one to see if it is one I could stomach, and it looks like I’ll like it. I might have to close my eyes in a few places, but I can do that.

Here are some of the rides and attractions we’re excited to ride again (or try for the first time):

Magic Kingdom

• Jungle Cruise
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Splash Mountain (not me)
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (not me)
• Haunted Mansion
• Carrousel
• Mickey’s Philharmagic
• Peter Pan’s Flight
• Winnie the Pooh
• it’s a small world
• Under the Sea – Little Mermaid
• Dumbo
• Seven Dwarfs Mine Train (not me)
• Monster’s Inc. Laugh Floor
• Tomorrowland Speedway
• Space Mountain (not me)
• Buzz Lightyear

Epcot

• Soarin’
• Spaceship Earth
• Mission Space (not me)
• Test Track (not me)
• The Seas with Nemo
• Turtle Talk with Crush
• Living with the Land
• Journey into Imagination with Figment
• Disney and Pixar Short Film Festival in 4D (this is new)
• Visiting the different countries — we like the Mexico boat ride and the “Frozen” Viking ride in Norway
• I also like trying out the food from different countries.  Epcot has an annual food and wine festival where they set up carts outside each country and sell smaller size samplers.  I think that’s usually in September and October of each year.

Animal Kingdom

• Avatar Flight of Passage (new)
• Na’vi River Journey (also new – in the new Pandora section modeled after the Avatar movie)
• It’s Tough to be a Bug
• the Lion King show
• Kilimanjaro Safaris
• Wildlife Express Train – goes to a petting zoo
• Up! A Bird Adventure show (new)
• Kali River Rapids
• Everest (not me)
• River of Light nighttime water show (I think this is new)
• Finding Nemo musical
• Dinosaur

Hollywood Studios

• Slinky Dog Dash (new)
• Toy Story Mania
• Star Tours
•  Muppets in 3D
• Voyage of the Little Mermaid live show
• Beauty and the Beast live show
• Rock’n Roller Coaster with Aerosmith (not me)
• Tower of Terror (not me)
• Indiana Jones Stunt Show
• Disney Junior on stage (never watched before)
• Fantasmic fireworks

 

Next Art Project?

I’ve been on the lookout for another acrylic painting project.  This one needs to be a little more advanced than the other ones I’ve done because I want to use it toward a Personal Project 10 hour project.  I found this one from the Art Sherpa that looks cool:

But this one is also pretty neat:

I’ll ask my stepdaughter which one she prefers and will go with that.  Stay tuned for the results!  Of course, now that I’m googling the links again, I stumble upon these two:

 

Note:  Stepdaughter has voted on the fireworks one.  It should be fun!

Citizen of the World

 

Photo by Riccardo Bresciani on Pexels.com

While on vacation last week, we were playing a game with some cards left at the beach cottage.  One card asked, “If you had to leave the United States, what country would you choose to live in?”  Given today’s sad state of affairs, the list of viable options is narrowing.  I would have loved to live in Europe (Italy, Greece, France), but economies and safety seem to be nose-diving.  I’m too accustomed to English and avoiding seafood, so that cancels out anywhere in Asia.  I enjoy suburbia (i.e. Target, McDonald’s, and wifi), so there goes most of South America and Africa.  And I’m not a big fan of winter, so goodbye Canada.  I might be limited to that one Mediterranean place where everyone goes to gamble (Monaco?) but that apparently is an independent city-state in France.

Here are some quick facts courtesy of Google:

Quick facts

Monaco is a tiny independent city-state on France’s Mediterranean coastline known for its upscale casinos, yacht-lined harbor and prestigious Grand Prix motor race, which runs through Monaco’s streets once a year. Monte-Carlo, its major district, is home to an elegant belle-époque casino complex and ornate Salle Garnier opera house. It also has many luxe hotels, boutiques, nightclubs and restaurants.

I think I’ve made my choice!

Your Dream Job

Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

What would you choose as a profession if it paid what you currently earn?  I was asked this question recently and had to give it some deep thought.  While I majored in Accounting (I’m a CPA), I minored in English because I like to read.  I didn’t major in it because I knew it wouldn’t pay what a business degree could.  What else might I have majored in if salary was no issue?

I think the answer may change depending on what season of life you are in.  I might have enjoyed being a travel guide like Rick Steves, but I can’t wander too far from home now with a little one.  I also thought of movie critics and restaurant critics, but I don’t really like a diversity of things, and those professions kind of require it.  Imagine if I went to review a seafood restaurant and ate no seafood!?!

I think what I would enjoy right now would involve working from home in the teaching field.  An online life coach (although I would need a LOT of training in that area) would be very fulfilling, as well as flexible for my current needs.  But does that industry exist?  If someone wanted a life coach, wouldn’t they just go see someone in person?  Maybe not, because it takes time to travel, and technology is getting to the point where video conference calls are about as good as seeing each other in person.

Sure enough, I googled, and there was a plethora of websites (some cheesy and some not) that offer such a service.  There is just something so inspiring about helping someone get out of the box that they have created for themselves.  We are limited by our own preconceived notions most of the time.  If we did away with those, we would go far beyond what we could ever imagine.

Here are some initial pointers:

1. Surround yourself with positive people.  Nothing sinks a day like a negative Nelly.
2. Do what you enjoy – make a career of it.  The saying “if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life” is right.
3. Don’t worry.  How often has your worst fear happened?  Not very often.  And if it did, how did worrying about it ahead of time help?  Not at all.  We spend so much time worrying that we forget to enjoy the pleasures of our day.
4. Set stretch goals, but appreciate the journey too.  If you shoot for the stars but land on the moon, you are probably millions of miles ahead of anyone who didn’t bother to set any goals.  And the scenery was probably better too.
5. Trust your gut.  Live your life as honestly as you can so that you are trustworthy to yourself and to others.  Then, when something doesn’t smell right, you’ll immediately recognize it for what it is.

The Not So Terrible Twos?

I’ve noticed a shift lately in my toddler.  She is a 22 month old who can be sweet as can be one second, and then on the floor flailing around crying the next.  Normally these are known as the Terrible Twos, but according to The Danish Way of Parenting, this is simply a Boundary Stage.  They are not being terrible toddlers, but are simply testing boundaries.  Sometimes they have to test a boundary multiple times to get a feel for where it is.

This could explain why she looks at me, smiles, and proceeds to do that thing I told her not to do, and then gets mad when I scold her yet again.  It is also why, when she wants to go outside and blow bubbles when it’s bedtime, and I insist on taking her to bed instead, that she loses it.

The whole point of calling it boundary testing takes away the label from your child, and consequently, from you.  No, you are not a terrible parent because your child is wailing in the grocery check out line.  You are a good parent for enforcing boundaries.

I have been a good parent today at enforcing the boundaries of no tablets.  I was such a good parent, that she wailed halfway to daycare, but then, a miracle occurred.  She picked up the Dr. Seuss book I had stuck in the backseat (that earlier she unceremoniously *threw* out of her sight) and started “reading” it.  She was even talking to herself a bit and was in a good mood by the time we got to daycare.

Every once in a while I get a parenting win…

Screen Time Fast for 22 Month Old

I’m thinking of doing an electronics fast for my 22 month old.  This girl is addicted to her “I-Dad” and wants to watch YouTube videos about Elmo or various nursery rhymes as soon as she wakes up, when she’s in the car, and as soon as she gets home.  She can’t eat dinner without her I-Dad and now doesn’t voluntarily play with any of her toys because she’s so busy watching her tablet.

It started out great.  She was needing 100% of my attention, and the tablet was a nice diversion.  But she is just glued to it now.  If she didn’t go to daycare 5 days a week, she’d probably be on that thing all day, much like her siblings with their PlayStation in the summer. She has tantrums, but I don’t know if she would have those anyway, considering that she’s entering the Terrible Two’s.

The effects of screen time on a developing brain, according to this book: Reset Your Child’s Brain, can be damaging.  The child is repeatedly enduring the fight or flight response because of the over-stimulation.  There is too much cognitive load.  When the technology is taken away, the child’s pre-frontal cortex starts to shut down, causing mood swings, tantrums, difficulty self-regulating, memory loss, sleep deprivation.  All symptoms showing the child is under chronic stress.  I don’t want that for my little girl!

Passive screen time does not require the child’s brain to be active, the parents are most likely monitoring it, and it is not as damaging.  This is something such as a television.

Interactive screen time is more harmful.  Contrary to what we might think, it over-engages the brain, and causes the stress I mentioned earlier.  It also causes long term effects which affect their quality of life down the road.

In order to clarify a diagnosis, do a “fast” first.  That means 2-4 weeks of no electronics. Then gauge their behavior.

Wish me luck!

Let’s All Just Take a Breath

This week a small restaurant that nobody outside the D.C. / Virginia area had ever heard of made the news for telling White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to take her family and leave because they did not want her business.  Neither she nor anyone in her party did anything within the restaurant that would call for them to be refused service.  The refusal was simply based on the fact that she is the White House Press Secretary for Donald Trump and that she works for “an inhumane and unethical administration,” according to the restaurant.   If that reason were used to refuse service at every restaurant across America, there would be a number of us starving tonight.

Nevertheless, did the restaurant have the right to refuse service for this reason, or for that matter, for any reason, whether outlandish or not?

Before you answer, think about the bakery that refused to bake a cake for the wedding of a gay couple, citing religious reasons.

I would agree with the Supreme Court that yes, the bakery does have the right to refuse service.  And then, since I am not a hypocrite, that means that the restaurant who refused Sarah Sanders’ party had that right as well.  Was it very nice?  No. But we shouldn’t be forced to perform a service or sell a product to anyone.  If we own a business, we should have the right of refusal.  However, we should also have to experience the consequences of that refusal.

 

Potluck Idea

The Accounting department is having a pre-Independence day potluck this Friday and I signed up to bring fruit.  I’m debating whether to just bring a bunch of cut up strawberries and bananas, or go all out and make this yummy sounding Pina Colada fruit salad.  Here’s a peak at what it looks like:

Paper or Plastic?

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Who still uses cash to buy things?  I certainly don’t.  I’d call it a good day if I have more than $3 in my wallet and am craving a candy bar or soda from the vending machine.  If I don’t get the craving early enough in the day, my company cafeteria closes down and I’m stuck with a vending machine that only *rarely* takes credit cards.

Today, while I was inconveniently in a meeting, I received a text from my bank asking me about the last 3  transactions that showed on my credit card.  The first one was my typical breakfast purchase totaling $4.76.  The second was a $400+ purchase for some Nutraceutical thing and the third was a denied purchase of $400+ for another Nutraceutical place.  Since my credit card has been in my wallet next to me the entire time, I’m a little curious as to how my credit card number was obtained.  I logged on to my banking app (in case the texts were phishing), and confirmed that the text was legit.

Fortunately my bank was on top of it, and I have tagged the charges that aren’t mine.  They have immediately canceled my card and are issuing me a new one, to arrive in 5-7 business days.  If I didn’t have another credit card and a debit card, that could have put me in a real bind given that the 4th of July holiday will cause an added delay.  Now, I just have the inconvenience of adding a new credit card to my Amazon account, Paypal account, etc., etc.  We also have a Disney trip coming up that I paid for and linked all our wristbands to…you guessed it…my now canceled credit card.

I’d gladly take that inconvenience over having my bank account cleaned out.  To whomever stole it, I hope you trip over your shoelaces, twist your ankles, stub your toes while you are falling, break your nose as you land, and get a really obnoxious bed sore as you lay trying to recover.